The Crimson Company
by Kaboom0
Summary: A child of unknown origin, wielding a never before seen Ancient Magic. Without his memories of the past, how will this child react to his adopted country? Will he become a beacon shining through the darkness? Or will he devour Japan with his abilities? Join this crimson-eyed buffoon as he attends First High! (Guy in picture looks similar to Archimedes)
1. Chapter 1

A young couple is walking down the beach at dusk. The orange of the sun sets the sea ablaze, creating a stunning light show to be cast across the sand. The coupledoes not a care in the world, they are just enjoying the time they have together. She is the daughter of a large technology mogul in Japan,the man with her owns an upscale restaurant in Tokyo. They are currently on vacation on a private island owned by the girl's family. The man is softly whispering in the woman's ear when she suddenly gasps.

"What's wrong, Mya?" The man asks.

"Rei, look over there! Is that a child?" Mya quickly asks.

Rei looks to where Mya is pointing and sees a young boy staggering out of the ocean. His clothes are torn and tattered, the ends of his white overcoat are burnt and charred. Light reflects off of the water droplets in his silver hair, casting a dull halo around him. Remnants of soot cover his clothing and pale features. He is clutching at his left side, where his coat has been stained a dark red. A metallic object hangs from his neck, bouncing against his chest with every step. He falls to one knee and grasps the object around his neck with a blood soaked hand. The whites of his eyes are devoured, leaving his crimson iris's surrounded with black. Suddenly, the black reverts to white and he collapses to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

The boy's eyes snap open, his right hand instinctively grasping the object around his neck. His eyes scan the room before breathing a sigh of relief. But the boy catches himself.

'Why did I just do that? Where am I?' he asks himself.

The sliding door to the room opens and the boy extends his left arm tworads the intruder, his right hand once again grasping the object around his neck.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Wait a second! I was just coming to check on you!" The man exclaims, covering his face instinctively.

"Oh, sorry about that. I am not entirely sure what caused me to react in that manner." The boy responds.

"Wait? You can speak Japanese?" The man asks, his surprise written all over his face.

"I guess? Is that strange?"

"Kind of. You don't look Japanese for sure. There's also the fact you just walked out of the ocean."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't remember? Wait, can you remember anything? Do you know your name?"

The young boy searches his mind for information but shakes his head after coming up blank.

"Huh. I guess you may have amnesia then. How about those clothes on the chair next to you? Do the remind you of anything?"

The boy looks at the pile of tattered and bloodstained clothes but shakes his head once again.

"What about that necklace of yours? That bring back anything?"

The boy raises the the object around his neck into his line of sight. It is a small metallic cube, with strange characters inscribed in the metal. He turns it over and squints at the small writing on the bottom.

"Archimedes." The boy says.

"Archimedes?"

"Its written on the bottom of this. I think it may be my name."

"That sure isn't a Japanese name. You really can't remember anything else?"

"No. Sorry."

* * *

After Rei and Mya returned from their trip, they adopted Archimedes and raised him as their own. The doctors were able to determine that he was about seven years old. Archimedes and his new family decided to make his birthday the date he was adopted. They enrolled him in school were he had exemplary grades. He aspired to take over Mya's father's business when the time came, as he and his adopted grandfather made a deep bond after Archimedes was adopted. But, his fate was sealed shortly after his tenth birthday.

* * *

"Shiba Archimedes?" The female teacher called, directing Archimedes to the large CAD.

At Mya's father's request, Archimedes was given his mother's surname rather than his father's. This was due to his interest in having Archimedes eventually taking his place in managing his many businesses. Archimedes was named the heir-apparent to his grandfather's holdings despite being adopted due to his intellect and because Mya's brother, Tatsurou, had been absorbed into the Yotsuba clan, renouncing his claim to the Shiba fortune.

"Yes!" Archimedes said, placing his palm on the cool display of the CAD.

"Do you remember how we said to operate it?" The teacher asks.

"I do."

Archimedes focused on the small rolling platform in front of him. Engaging the Activation Sequence, his hair began to float and the whites of his eyes turned black, something that hadn't happened since he showed up on the beach. The characters on the small metallic cube that hung from his neck burned red and the Activation Sequence he was trying to construct was changed. Psions began whirling around the cube, slowly destroying it. As this happened, memories began flooding back to Archimedes. But he did not regain memories of his past life. He regained memories of the Ancient Magic that he had learned from a young age. A small ring fell out of the quickly disintegrating cube. It was white as snow, with tiny characters inscribed on it. As soon as the cube disappeared completely, his eyes reverted to normal. He stared at the ring for a moment before slipping it over his ring finger on his right hand. He turned to the small classroom assistant robot.

'If I remember correctly, I have to understand the inner workings of an object before I can use my magic on it. It has to be able to function on its own and I can only control its movements. It also has to either be unconscious or accept my control over it.' Archimedes thinks to himself.

He extends his right arm towards the robot and invokes his magic. The whites of his eyes turn black again and the characters on his ring burn a bright red. He feels the robot come under his control and smiles to himself before mentally ordering it around.

* * *

"Mistress. It would appear the Shiba family has another surprise for us."

Yotsuba Maya looks down on the servant who has come to inform her of this new development.

"Out with it then." She orders.

"Shiba Archimedes. The adopted son of Shiba Mya and Suzuki Rei. Apparently they found him washed up on a beach in 2087. In his recent test to judge latent magical ability, he displayed a unique ancient magic." The man says before pausing awkwardly.

"And? What kind of magic is it?"

"That is the problem, Mistress. There is no recorded ancient magic that match it."

"Are you saying we have no idea what kind of power this child possesses?" Maya demands.

"Not entirely. The boy has seemed to have lost his memory of the past, but he has appeared to recently regained the knowledge of the magic he possesses."

"And?"

"And, the child claims it is Necromancy."


	2. Chapter 2

**YAY! I had the idea for Archimedes when I first read about the kinky HAR the robotics club has... dont judge me... ANYWAYS, I have decided to run with this for as long as I can. And just in case you are wondering what shade of silver Archimedes' hair is, here is a link to the color. . And yes. I know that that is a car. And no, his hair is not that glossy. Just imagine a normal hair texture in the color of the car.**

"Necromancy?" The female Yotsuba agent who was sent to question Archimedes asks.

"Yes, but not in the whole raising the dead manner that you are probably thinking of. While that is well within my abilities, it is not the best way of operating."

"And why is that?"

"Because while the dead bodies still have the basic necessary components to be controlled, all they can do is walk around and do what any human can do. You see, their brain is already useless at that point. I cannot use it for any complex actions. The only use I have for raising the dead is to retrieve their memories."

"You can retrieve the memories of dead people?"

"To an extent. There are a few problems with it though. I need a general idea of when the memory was recorded and what it was about. There is also the fact that I can only retrieve the memories if their hippocampus is still intact. Decay and physical damage are things I cannot get around. It also takes time. Rooting through someone's memories is not an easy task."

"Okay, so you don't use dead bodies. What do you use?"

"It depends on the situation. I can always use humans if need be."

"You mean living humans?"

"Yes, but only if they are unconscious. Even then it is still a struggle. I can only control someone or something if I can subdue the current occupant. But the unconscious rule only applies to creatures capable of higher order thinking, i.e. Humans. Lesser animals like dogs and cats can be controlled easily at any point."

"We do have some information on Necromancy, but that is only based on myth and legend. Even so, why don't we have information about controlling animals?"

"Because, when a necromancer takes control of a being, we have access to their memories and how they interact with their environment. You will notice a dead body walking down the street, but not a cat that is being controlled. But, living creatures are still not my prefered hosts."

"Why is that?"

"Pain. Necromancy involves hijacking another creature. We can see what they see, and also feel what they feel. Why do you think that necromancers haven't taken over the world yet? Of course there is the reason that I am quite possibly the only one in existence right now, but the main reason is because we feel our host's pain. Every injury they suffer, we feel. Why do you think fire has always been portrayed as being so effective against the undead? Because we feel that we are being burnt alive. While we do not sustain the injury ourselves, the mental strain is more than enough to send anyone over the edge."

"So what do you use?"

Archimedes smirks.

"Robots."

"Robots?"

"Well, any electronic system anyways. We have to have something to control in order to use necromancy. Luckily, electronic systems fit the bill. Cameras, phones, robots, security systems; as long as it has some processing power, I can control it."

To illustrate this point, Archimedes activates his magic on the small camera in the corner of the ceiling. The camera begins to spin wildly in its plastic shielding, the soft sound of the stressed motors evident.

"How were you able to evoke ancient magic so quickly without any sort of chanting or anything?"

"Necromancy as a whole is only one spell. The spell to take control. It takes longer if the prospective host puts up a fight, but over time Necromancers have been able to get the speed down. That's why I am wearing this ring." Archimedes says, displaying his ring.

Said ring now glows with the fiery red that the symbols are letting off. The whites of Archimedes' eyes have once again turned black, but the agent appears not to notice.

"So, without the ring, you can't cast the magic?"

"No, think of this ring as a rudimentary Specialized CAD. The runes engraved in it speed up the process but the ring itself is not necessary. I can cast my magic without it, just slower."

"Why the emphasis on speed?"

"It all comes back to pain. The faster you can cast and dispel Necromancy, the less likely you are to feel pain. It is like an emergency eject button. Also, there is no point in trying to make the spell stronger so speed was the only place for improvement."

"The spell couldn't be made stronger?"

"No, the spell is highly based on natural ability. As long as you have a host enthralled, it drains Psions. The more hosts under your control, the more Psions you need. You also need significant brain power. Each host under a Necromancer's control requires some form of direct control, it is very difficult to control multiple hosts. Not to mention having to suppress whatever is currently residing in the host."

* * *

Maya frowns as she watches the recorded conversation.

"Who knows about him and his power?" she inquiries.

"Only us, my lady. We actually have that boy to thank. He was able to wipe himself from the camera footage and the teacher we planted to monitor him smoothed it all over. He was reprimanded, but there will be no permanent record of this occurring. We only learned of this because of your order to continue observing the extended Shiba family."

"Leave him for now. He will probably develop his skills far faster without our interference."

* * *

Archimedes twirled a pen between his fingers, unfazed by the events occurring around him. His thick silver hair has grown to shoulder length, and he has grown considerably in the two years since his Necromancy was awakened. He is wearing a long white duster, white dress pants, and a red blouse. Many of the men around him question his choice of attire given the situation, but they know better than to voice their concerns. They are currently riding in a military VTOL, the interior has been blacked out to cut down on the effects of emerging into the dark of the battlefield. The bay of the VTOL is illuminated by a red light, despite the apparent black-out. The light comes from Archimedes. His clothing is covered in glowing red characters which glow dimly, but most of the light comes from the ring on his right hand. Fiery red characters dance across the surface of the snow white ring, constantly changing and rearranging. The men accompanying him shiver every time his eyes are illuminated by the light. His crimson red iris' are surrounded by a sea of black.

A crackle in Archimedes' ear wakes him from his trance.

"Have you reached the drop site?" a female voice asks.

Archimedes sighs before answering.

"No, I have not. But I am ready to go. I am still disappointed that I have to use the old models rather than my new ones."

"Your new robots are still in testing. We need something that is guaranteed to work."

Archimedes sighs again as he goes back to devoting his focus to the robots under his control. There are 20 in all. Instead of being humanoid killing machines like people imagine, these are simply mobile turrets. Each one has two mounted mini-guns and a grenade launcher. As the VTOL comes to a stop over the ground, the robots are released and Archimedes begins to send them out to kill the foreign invaders.

* * *

"So, no one was the wiser of his magic?" Maya asks.

"No ma'am. Everyone assumed that Japan had just sent in a group of advances robots." Archimedes' female handler said.

"And will we be able to maintain this secrecy around him?"

Archimedes' handler sighs.

"Sadly not. He is developing very powerful units for himself to control, but they are not the most inconspicuous."

* * *

"You are doing what with some of my HARs?" Archimedes' grandfather inquiries.

Shiba Tatsuaki, Archimedes Grandfather, is the owner of a large technology company which produces a large amount of HARs along with other household appliances. This has become a very profitable business, allowing the Shiba family to amass a large amount of wealth and power.

"Militarizing them. I am switching the design to be that of a normal Japanese man in his 20's and then putting an integrated CAD into them."

"We have tried militarizing humanoids in the past. They are never sturdy enough to handle battlefield conditions."

"Ahh. But that's where Necromancy comes in. My magic supplies a constant stream of Psions to my hosts. I can channel those into runes on the bodies to reinforce them as well as activate personal speed magic on the robots, among other things."

"I was under the impression that you were unable to use CADs, let alone cast other spells."

"You are still correct in that thinking. I am still a BS Magician. I am unable to use CADs or any other magic other than Necromancy."

Tatsuaki cringes when Archimedes says "Necromancy".

"But, through a lot of research and testing, I have discovered that I can activate magic and CADs through those under my control. Which, in my opinion, is much more useful than being able to command a wide variety of magic myself."

"I… See…" Tatsuaki says, distraught.

"Don't worry Grandfather. This will only help me maintain my position as your heir. I am turning your companies into strategic assets for me so the Yotsubas won't try to make me relinquish my claim."

Tatsuaki immediately brightens at this.

"By the way, Grandfather? Have you been able to get any information about "Mahesvara", the one I saw in Okinawa?"

Tatsuaki shakes his head.

"No, but the information cover up around his identity has the Yotsuba's name written all over it."

"I'll take that into account. Thank you Grandfather."

* * *

Archimedes squirms in the black suit he was forced to wear, unable to get comfortable. He feels a hand touch his shoulder and turns to his mother.

"Archimedes! Stop squirming!" Mya hisses in a soft voice.

"I'm sorry! But you know that clothes other than the ones specially made for me make my scars itch. Not to mention I hate the color black."

"I'm sorry, but you will have to deal with it! We are at a funeral after all!"

Currently, Archimedes and his parents are attending the funeral of Yotsuba Miya. They are sitting in the second row from the front, directly behind Miya's immediate family. The service is fairly standard, lacking the flair one would expect for a member of the ten master clans. The service ends quickly and everyone is escorted to a ballroom. Archimedes slips away from the party and into a small side room. As he gently closes the door, he notices that he is not the only one who has taken refuge.

"Um… Hello." Archimedes says before pulling out a mobile terminal with a custom OS and punching in a few commands.

"Hello." The boy and girl who are in the room reply.

"I'm Shiba Archimedes. I was the nephew of Yotsuba Miya, not that I ever got to meet her…"

The young girl cocks her head, a confused look on her face.

"You don't look Japanese. How exactly are you related?" She asks with a charming voice.

The charm appears to be lost on Archimedes, who is currently struggling out of his suit jacket.

"Oh yeah! I am the adopted son of Shiba Mya and Shiba Rei. Apparently I washed up on the shore one day about 7 years ago and they took me in."

Archimedes shakes out his thick mane of silver hair before beginning to unbutton his shirt. The girl blushes fiercely and looks away, the boy continues to watch Archimedes.

"What do you think you are doing?" The boy asks in a monotone voice.

"Taking my clothes off so I can change." Archimedes says.

Archimedes unbuttons the last button and drops the shirt to the ground. Runes are carved into his skin, each one faintly glowing with red light.

"What purpose do those runes serve?" The boy asks, unaffected by the appearance of the scars.

"They help with my magic. With these I can increase Psion flow to my ring, allowing for more powerful magic. I already had them by the time my parents found me."

There is a light knock on the door. Archimedes opens the door and a small robot that looked like a trash bin enters the room. The girl looks at it with interest before blushing even more as Archimedes took off his pants. The robot opens, revealing some clothes. Archimedes slips into them easily, having worn these quite often. The outfit consists of white slacks, a white shirt, and a long white duster with red trim. He shakes out his shoulder length silver hair before smirking at the boy and girl in front of him.

"Alright, now you guys know about me. Who exactly are you?"

The bow boys and the girl curtseys.

"My name is Shiba Tatsuya." The boy says, "And this is my sister, Shiba Miyuki."

* * *

A few months have passed since Archimedes met his cousins. They became fast friends, becoming one of the only people that Miyuki can tolerate other than Tatsuya. They are currently in the basement of the home that they have been sharing. The house was originally Tatsuya and Miyuki's, but Archimedes began living there so that the Yotsuba family could have him easily under their observation. Tatsuya and Archimedes are currently sitting across from each other in the testing area in the basement. Miyuki looks on in nervous anticipation.

"Are you sure you two want to do this? I know that your research says it should work, but we still don't know much about the necromancy Archimedes controls." Miyuki asks, clearly distressed.

"Don't worry Miyuki, we know what we are doing." Tatsuya says with a soothing voice.

"Mostly." Archimedes adds.

Tatsuya shoots Archimedes a glare, to which Archimedes only shrugs in response.

After this, both of their expressions turn deadly serious.

"Ready?" Archimedes asks.

"Ready." Tatsuya responds.

Archimedes raises his right hand at Tatsuya and casts Necromancy. The whites of Archimedes eyes go black and his ring glows with a red light. After a few moments, they both stand up. They walk towards each other and Tatsuya throws a punch at Archimedes. Miyuki gasps, Archimedes is not particularly strong. He is about Tatsuya's height but is skinnier due to him having to spend most of his time meditating and working on his robots at the Yotsuba Clan's request. He also has to help with his grandfather's business to prepare him for when he takes control of the company, leaving him almost no time to train his physical body. Despite this, Archimedes dodges every punch that Tatsuya throws at him. Tatsuya ceases his assault and Archimedes picks up a customized CAD made for this experiment. Tatsuya proceeds to pick up a shinai. Archimedes casts Necromancy on the CAD. Immediately after this, an activation sequence forms around the shinai. A shrill shriek pierces the air and Tatsuya swings the sword around for a few moments before the spell is dispelled. Archimedes dispels Necromancy as well, giving a fiendish grin to Tatsuya.

"Did it work?" Miyuki asks.

"Oh yeah. It worked great!" Archimedes says, doing a small dance.

"What are you doing?" Tatsuya asks, with small grin.

"It's my victory dance! You like it?"

Miyuki giggles and Tatsuya shakes his head with a smile.

"Let's just go have some coffee." Tatsuya recommends.

"Don't you have to go over the results or anything?" Miyuki asks, cocking her head.

Tatsuya and Archimedes share a knowing look.

"What?" Miyuki asks, now even more confused.

"Let's talk over coffee." Tatsuya suggests again.

"What is with you and coffee?" Archimedes asks.

Tatsuya shrugs and walks upstairs. Miyuki and Archimedes fall into step behind him, Archimedes teasing Miyuki in various ways as they walk. As they enter the living area, a loud grinding noise is heard coming from the kitchen.

"God damn it." Archimedes curses under his breath before grabbing a toolbox from a closet and walking into the kitchen.

Tatsuya sits down in a chair and begins documenting the experiments results in a terminal while Miyuki begins making coffee.

"Miyuki?" Tatsuya asks after a short time.

"Yes, Onii-sama?"

"How would you feel if you had to marry Archimedes?"

Miyuki is stunned into silence, the only sounds that can be heard are that of Archimedes violently trying to fix the HAR by bending the gears back into place with a hammer.

"Onii-sama?" Miyuki finally manages to stammer out.

"We both know that **they **will eventually force you to marry a magician with great magical ability. I have no doubt that Archimedes is on a short list of candidates. He possesses great magical ability and commands a never before documented Ancient Magic that appears to be hereditary. There is also the fact that contrary to how he acts around us, he is a skilled manipulator and has a very commanding presence. I also believe that he is be a good candidate for becoming your husband because you two get along very well and he is one of the only people that can actually assist me with your protection."

Tatsuya pauses for a moment due to the shrill shriek of metal on metal piercing the air.

"So, what do you think? Does Archimedes have potential to become your husband?"

Miyuki opens her mouth to respond but is interrupted by one of Archimedes combat robot prototypes climbing up the stairs and entering the kitchen.

"I am not totally opposed to it. I guess that if I had to choose from a list that **they **came up with, I would chose Archimedes." Miyuki says, sporting a small blush.

The sound of metal being crushed comes from the kitchen before the robot emerges and returns to the basement. Archimedes emerges a few seconds later, a large grin on his face and a small cube of metal in his hand.

"Fixed it! Now all I need to do is make a new HAR!" Archimedes says, the backup HAR entering the kitchen behind him.

"What did you do?" Tatsuya asks.

"Fixed it."

"How?"

"By fixing it."

"…"

"…"

"What is that in your hand?"

"What are you talking about?"

Tatsuya sighs and activates his elemental sight, learning all that occurred in an instant.

"Maybe you should get changed, Archimedes." Miyuki suggests, barely able to contain a giggle at the conversation between her brother and cousin.

Archimedes' previously all white jumpsuit is now stained with oil and grease. There are also small burn marks on the suit.

"That's a splendid idea! I'll get right to that, Mistress Miyuki." Archimedes says, taking a deep bow.

Miyuki turns bright red but turns back to the coffee before Archimedes can notice. Archimedes goes upstairs to the bedroom he barely uses, leaving the siblings alone.

"Still "not totally opposed" to having him as your husband?" Tatsuya asks sarcastically.

"Be quiet…" Miyuki says blushing deeply.

Tatsuya chuckles to himself before a large crash is heard from upstairs. This is immediately followed by Archimedes shouting and the sound of things falling to the ground. Tatsuya sighs and walks upstairs to investigate. What he sees surprises him. Archimedes is standing in the hallway, holding a plunger, trying to fend off several tanuki.

"Archimedes, can't you just use your necromancy to control them?" Tatsuya asks, clearly amused by this situation.

"NO I CAN'T! NECROMANCY IS TARGETED, I CAN ONLY CAST IT ON ONE THING AT A TIME! THERE ARE AT LEAST 20 OF THESE THINGS!" Archimedes yells, swinging the plunger haphazardly.

"How did 20 of them show up?" Tatsuya asks.

"I accidentally left the window open the last time I went to my bedroom! It looks like these guys moved in in my absence!"

"I've got it." Miyuki interrupts.

Miyuki casts a low level movement spell, freezing all of the tanuki. Sadly, she did not get the area of effect exactly right.

"Sorry Archimedes!" She exclaims to the partially frozen Archimedes.

"Its fine Miyuki, but I would be very grateful if you could unfreeze me."

Miyuki casts another spell and Archimedes is freed from his icy binds. He walks into his room and closes the window before typing some commands into his terminal. Almost immediately, several small trash bin shaped HARs climb the stairs and begin carting the frozen tanuki outside. Archimedes, Miyuki, and Tatsuya all go back to the living area and take their respective seat, sipping at their coffee.

"So… Would you two mind explaining exactly what you did?" Miyuki asks, flashing a smile that could melt the ice she makes so often.

"Archimedes, how about you start. You are the one knows the most about Necromancy after all." Tatsuya suggests.

"Alright then. Well, Miyuki, as I am sure you have gathered in the time we have spent together, I do not use my Necromancy to raise the dead as depicted in popular culture. While raising the dead is well within my abilities, I find that there are much better ways to use my power. The basis of Necromancy is that I forcibly take control of a creature/robots processes. But, I do not have to directly control of everything the thing I am controlling does. I merely command the thing under my control to do something, and their built in natural process will accomplish that for me. That is why I can control multiple things at once. The reason that I can have the combat robots I made cast magic is because they are programed to be able to accomplish the activation sequence. I only have to supply the Psions needed and select the spell. One of the effects of doing this is that I have complete access to all of the memories of the person I am controlling. This allows me to accurately judge the abilities of those under my ability. So, when I learned that Tatsuya had an additional Magic Calculation Area…"

Miyuki noticeably cringes at the mention of the surgery her brother went through, Tatsuya remains impassive.

"I wondered if I could jump into that area and control it without Tatsuya instinctively pushing me out."

Tatsuya takes up the explanation after that.

"After doing test to test the feasibility of doing this, we decided to go forward with the experiment. Together, we created the custom CAD that you saw Archimedes use. That is a special general CAD. It has no functionality to cast the spells, but it does contain a vast library of Activation Sequences. Archimedes is able to directly access the sequences using Necromancy and then utilize my Flash Cast to have me preform the spell. Another perk of this is that our consciousness are linked during this time, allowing for instant transmission of data between us."

"So you two were able to search each other's memories?" Miyuki asks, clearly embarrassed about the implications of this.

"Yes, we were." Archimedes says, winking at a very embarrassed Miyuki. "Speaking of which, Tatsuya? Were you able to find anything about what happened before I showed up that day on the shore?"

Tatsuya shakes his head.

"No, but it doesn't appear to be normal memory loss." He says in a serious tone.

"Meaning?"

"There were traces of magic. Someone didn't want you to regain your memories."

"Wait, Onii-sama. We only know one person who is capable of doing something like that!" Miyuki says with a worried tone.

Tatsuya nods grimly.

"You're right Miyuki. The only person I know of that could do something like this is **our mother**."


	3. Chapter 3

"You think that your mother forcibly erased my memories?" Archimedes asks in disbelief.

"I can't think of anyone else who would resort to such measures to keep you from regaining your memory." Tatsuya says, tapping away furiously at his terminal's keyboard.

"But Onii-sama. Archimedes said himself that he has never met our mother." Miyuki adds.

"Unless she erased my memories of meeting her as well…" Archimedes says.

"I think Archimedes is right. I wouldn't put it past **them **to do so for security measures."

The room goes quiet for a moment. Suddenly, Miyuki jumps out of her seat.

"Wait! Does that mean Archimedes can never recover his memories of his past?" She exclaims in distress.

To this, Archimedes smirks evilly.

"I don't think I'll need to…" He says with an ominous voice.

"Archimedes?" Miyuki asks, shrinking back into her chair.

"What are you thinking Archimedes?" Tatsuya asks, looking up from his terminal.

"The Yotsuba clan has shown great interest in me ever since my Necromancy was awakened, correct?"

"That's correct." Tatsuya responds.

Miyuki begins to blush deeply, remembering her conversation with Tatsuya earlier.

"The Yotsuba Clan is always looking for powerful wizards to add to their gene pool, right?"

Miyuki blushes even more at this.

"I think I see where you are going…" Tatsuya says, locking his terminal.

"Would you two mind explaining it to me then?" Miyuki asks after regaining her composure.

"I don't have to do anything because the Yotsuba Clan will be able to figure it all out for me. And, if they don't tell me on their own, I can always steal the information. But, I'll give them some time. I don't want to jump the gun."

"Are you sure that that is the best course of action?" Miyuki asks with a worried tone.

"Yeah, it will be fine. After all, you two need my help to take down your aunt anyways so we might as well train for now."

Tatsuya looks surprised for a moment before regaining his composure.

"Right… Shared memories…"

"And don't you forget it! We are in this together now, Tatsuya!"

* * *

Archimedes is currently in the basement of the shared house working on his combat robots. He is in a small sound proof room etching runes into the various parts of the HAR he is currently modifying. Thanks to his grandfather's position, he has been able to receive an ample amount of HARs built to his specifications. Each one stands at about 160 cm and has a skin like polymer painted on. But, these robots are devoid of physical features. Full prototype body suits of Tatsuya's design hang behind each HAR. But, Archimedes has made one major change to them. Each one is now a blinding white rather than the black Tatsuya intended. An array of magic-equipped rifles and side arms are hung on the walls. Archimedes finally completes carving the last rune into the combat robot. He stretches and cracks his back before disabling the do not disturb program he put into place. He admires the 5 new robot prototypes he has just completed. Each one is in a display case, surround by each's person effects. He lets his gaze wander to the previous prototypes he has made. He keeps one robot from each prototype phase and scraps the rest. He is currently on the 5th generation of his modified HARs. He hears the door being opened and turns to see Miyuki carrying a cup of coffee with a smile.

"I see you have finished your new robots." She says, handing him his coffee.

"Yup! Now all that is left is to test them."

Miyuki looks at him curiously.

"What, is there something on my face?" He asks.

"You haven't been coming to meals lately and I haven't seen you leave this room. You have huge bags under your eyes right now. How long exactly have you been working?"

"Um…"

"Don't lie to me Archimedes."

"In total?"

"Since the last time you slept."

"Well, I started working on Wednesday…"

"It's Saturday."

"Oh. Huh, I guess time flies when you are building killer robots."

Archimedes chuckles to himself as Miyuki watches him with an unwavering gaze.

"Are you waiting for something?" Archimedes asks, slightly concerned at what the cool beauty in front of him may have done.

"I am just waiting for the sleeping pills I put in your coffee to kick in."

Archimedes is stunned into silence.

"You did what?"

"I put sleeping pills into your coffee. I know that you have been training with Sensei Kokonoe in order to train your Ancient Magic and your physical body, but you can't keep pushing yourself like this."

The first wave of drowsiness hits Archimedes like a truck. He stumbles into the small cot he had set up and sits down.

"What's this? Miyuki is actually worried about someone other than Tatsuya? Thank Kami! I am finally being noticed by the Ice Princess." He mumbles jokingly.

Miyuki sits down next to him on the cot.

"Of course I worry about you. You are my cousin after all, not to mention a very close friend."

Miyuki pauses for a second.

"There is also a high likelihood that I will have to marry you." She whispers.

Archimedes responds by slipping into unconsciousness due to the sleeping pills and falling into Miyuki's lap. She smiles at this, adjust his head to a comfortable position while the multiple robots tasked with keeping him alive while he is working move the rest of his body onto the bed.

* * *

"Miyuki? Archimedes?" Tatsuya calls as he enters the house, just getting back from training.

He decides to check the basement since he told Miyuki to keep an eye on Archimedes while he was gone. As he walks to Archimedes' workshop, he discovers an unusual sight. Archimedes is asleep on his cot, with Miyuki sleeping next to him. Miyuki has Archimedes in a hug from behind, a small smile on her face. Tatsuya smiles at this, glad that his sister is happy. He leaves the two alone and goes off to do some work.

* * *

Miyuki wakes up, but does not open her eyes. She is very comfortable where she is and does not want to let go of the warm object she is cuddling. She nestles deeper into the object, wrapping herself in the warmth. As she does this, the object lets out a groan. Her eyes snap open, but all she can see is the white cloth that she has nestled into. She slowly sits up, her face growing redder by the second. She sees Archimedes, completely passed out on the cot, not moving; his face is the picture of serenity and innocence. She quickly scrambles off the cot, only to trip over one of the robots surrounding the cot to make sure Archimedes doesn't fall.

'W-w-what happened? W-w-why was I s-s-sleeping with A-A-Archimedes?' She asks herself.

She searches her memories to try to figure out how she got into that position.

'Alright, so Archimedes was sleeping in my lap and I must have dozed off… But how did I end up in that position?'

The small robot she tripped over begins emitting soft sounds of protest. With that, everything snaps into place for Miyuki.

'Archimedes' robots! They must have moved me into that position when I fell asleep!'

Miyuki's thoughts are interrupted by a soft chuckling at the door. She turns to the source of the sound and her embarrassment intensifies. Tatsuya is standing in the doorway, his face full of mirth at his sister's predicament.

Miyuki runs out of the room, heading straight to her bedroom.

Tatsuya watches her run and chuckles once again. He then proceeds to walk over to Archimedes and flick him in the forehead. This prompts Archimedes to mumble out an incomprehensible stream of words. Tatsuya rolls his eyes and bends down to Archimedes ear.

"I brought new experimental tech from FLT…" He whispers before stepping back.

Archimedes jumps out of the cot, frantically looking for said tech before shooting Tatsuya a dirty look.

"Come on, I set up everything we need for the test you wanted to do." Tatsuya says, walking towards the testing area.

Archimedes grins fiendishly and follows behind.

* * *

"Alright Tatsuya, I am all ready." Archimedes says after casting necromancy on the HAR that Tatsuya prepared.

Tatsuya raises his silver CAD and aims at the robot.

"Remember, you just want to target the Psions I have in place controlling it." Archimedes says.

Tatsuya nods and pulls the trigger.

Both of them wait for a few moments.

"Did you successfully cast the spell?" Archimedes asks with trepidation.

"I did."

"Do it again."

Tatsuya pulls the trigger time after time, each time attempting to destroy the bindings between Archimedes and the HAR. He continues to do this until Archimedes taps him on the shoulder.

"I think it's safe to say that this confirms our suspicions?" Archimedes says with a grin as he dispels his necromancy.

Tatsuya nods, returning the smile.

"Alright, so let's go over what we have learned about my Necromancy so far."

"It's very convenient that you have always referred to Necromancy as Necromancy rather than a type of magic, because I am unsure if we can truly classify it as magic at this point."

"Right, since my Necromancy does not alter the Eidos, it is technically something completely separate from magic."

"I am still not sure how to interpret our last test though..."

"Why? Did you see something with your elemental sight?"

"Yes…"

"Okay, what did you see?"

"The Psions you were applying to the HAR did interact how you expected, but it is still a bit difficult to wrap my head around. Your Psions were not affected in the least by my Decomposition passing through them, pretty thoroughly proving that there are no activation sequences taking place."

"So I have a type of 'magic' that does not have any activation sequences, doesn't change Edios, and has an information footprint that is unable to be picked up by magicians."

"Correct. I only notice it because I can see your Psions traveling to that which you are trying to control."

"Interesting… Do not record any of this on paper or electronically. We can't let **them **find out about any of this."

"Since when did you start ordering me around?" Tatsuya asks with a sly grin.

"Oh, come off your high horse, 'Silver'.

* * *

**(Note: Long time skip.)**

Archimedes is sitting on a bench outside of first high, watching the comical conversation between Tatsuya and Miyuki. He calls out to Miyuki as she runs up the stairs into the school.

"GOOD LUCK MIYUKI!"

Miyuki turns and waves to him before entering the building. Tatsuya sits down next to him with a sigh.

"What's wrong buddy? Sad because your sister and I are in course 1 and you aren't?" He teases in good fun.

Tatsuya rolls his eyes at his friend's teasing.

"You of all people know that I don't care what class I am in as long as I have access to the secure documents about magic they have here. I am not entirely sure why you chose to be in course 1 anyways. I would think you would enjoy the freedom of course 2 more."

Archimedes leans back and looks at the sky, his long silver hair sparkling in the light.

"You know full well that I did this for Miyuki. Neither of you do not have access to your full power right now. This way, I can help protect her while you do the research you need to do. And you don't have to worry about me not being able to use magic. We can always use our hat trick if worse comes to worst."

Tatsuya chuckles at this.

"You really thought all of this out didn't you? You may be smarter than I originally thought."

"Oi! Who do you think modified the plans for the Silver Line to raise loop cast efficiency by 120%? And what about your custom 'Trident' that I built and maintain? Not to mention the 11 generations of humanoid combat robots in my lab!" Archimedes exclaims, keeping his voice low so that no one other than Tatsuya can hear.

"I get your point. Calm down." Tatsuya says.

Archimedes takes deep breath and leans back again. As he does this, two girls walk by.

"Is that a Weed?" One of them asks.

"He is early despite being a reserve. I wonder why that Bloom is sitting next to him?"

Archimedes frowns at this and casts Necromancy on a bird flying overhead. He has it drop two little white bombs in the girls walking away before releasing it. The two girls shriek as his "presents" hit them in the head. Archimedes tries desperately to contain his laughter whereas Tatsuya only rolls his eyes.

"Well, if you are done messing around, I am going to do some research." Tatsuya says, pulling out his mobile terminal.

"Alright then. I am going to take a nap." Archimedes says, leaning back into the bench.

Tatsuya raises an eyebrow.

"How long has it been since you last slept?" Tatsuya asks.

"What do you mean? I slept the 8 hours required of a growing boy last night." Archimedes says with an innocent smile.

"I am not Miyuki. Just tell me how long."

"It's been a week, give or take."

"This is why they call you the "master of the mind" at the temple. It's incredible how well you can manage your body."

Archimedes shrugs before falling immediately into a deep sleep.

Archimedes has perfected the art of sleeping with the help of Sensei Kokonoe. He is capable of immediately falling into a deep sleep at will, no matter where he is and what's going on around him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Yeah... So, I planned on putting this out earlier and it being longer.**

**Clearly, that did not happened.**

**In other news! I have been working on the Yokohama Disturbance storyline so that I can have a clear path I need to take in this story. The Yokohama Disturbance will be the end of this story. But, I will continue this storyline in a different story if people enjoy or if I feel like it.**

**It will most likely be the latter.**

**Anyways, READ ON! FAN-FIC PEOPLE, PERSONS... Fuck it, I have no idea what to call you people. Just read the chapter.**

Saegusa Mayumi is having a good day. Today is the induction ceremony to kick off the new school year, the school year that she will serve as student council president. She is eagerly awaiting the start of the ceremony and is currently walking around the school grounds. She stops as she sees a peculiar sight. There are two men sitting on a bench, one of them passed out with his long silver hair draped behind the back of the bench and the other one reading in trance. The most surprising thing in this situation is the crest on their shoulders. The man with silver hair has an emblem denoting him as course 1, while the man with dark black hair has no emblem. She decides to go talk to these two to try to read the situation.

"Hello, are you two new students?" She asks charmingly.

The man with black hair looks up from his terminal, locking it.

"Yes, my name is Shiba Tatsuya. My friend here is…" Tatsuya says, delivering a sharp smack to the back of the boy with silver hair's head.

Mayumi is unable to contain her look of shock. She has never seen a course two student just randomly hitting a course one student, due to the divide between the two courses.

"Ow! What was that for Tatsuya?" The silver haired boy says, rubbing the back of his head.

The boy's eyes dart to Mayumi. His eyes are a deep crimson, eerily reminding Mayumi of fresh blood. His gaze puts her on guard a bit. Instead of the evaluation of physical features that most men do upon meeting women, his gaze seems to pierce her very soul.

Suddenly, he cracks a smile.

"Cool! You're eyes are red too!" He says cheerily.

*SMACK*

"GEZZUS TATSUYA! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA?" The boy shouts, nursing the back of his head after receiving the much harder hit to head.

"Remember your manners, introduce yourself." Tatsuya says cooly, his gaze unwavering.

The silver haired boy rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. I was getting to that." The boy grumbles.

He turns back to Miyuki, flashing her a smile that would befit a fairy tale prince.

"My name is Shiba Archimedes. But please, just call me Archimedes. It's a pleasure to meet you." He says, extending his hand.

Mayumi begins giggling uncontrollably, earning a raised eyebrow from both of the men in front of her.

"I'm sorry." She finally manages to say, "I came here originally to find out why there wasn't a fight breaking out because a course 1 and a course 2 student were sharing a bench. It turns out my concern was misplaced. Are you two related in some way?"

"Yeah, Tatsuya is my cousin. I was adopted by his aunt and uncle." Archimedes says.

"Oh? You were adopted?" Mayumi asks.

"Yup. Not in the way you think though. I kind of just washed up on the beach one day about 10 years ago and my parents took me in. I have absolutely no memory of what my life was like before then." Archimedes says.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize!" Mayumi exclaims, desperately trying to correct her mistake.

Archimedes shakes his head and smiles.

"Don't be. There was no way you could have known. Besides, I don't dwell on a past I can't even remember. I have chosen to focus on being who I am now, Shiba Archimedes."

A shrill beep comes from Archimedes' pocket.

"Speaking of who I am now, we are going to be late if we keep talking like this! Come on Tatsuya!" Archimedes says, jumping off the bench.

Archimedes begins to run towards the ceremony, with Tatsuya close behind.

Mayumi can only watch in awe as the two disappear around a corner. As soon as they leave her sight, she realizes she has made a grievous mistake.

"I'm Saegusa Mayumi by the way!" She shouts to the two, knowing full well they probably won't hear her.

* * *

Archimedes awoke as someone bumped into him as they were walking by. Archimedes had managed to sleep through the entire ceremony, without anyone being the wiser. He didn't feel as if he missed much, as Miyuki had been practicing her speech with him for the past few days. Even though she regularly complained about Tatsuya not being the representative of the incoming class, she still practiced her speech in order not to disappoint him in the likely case that she remains the representative.

As Archimedes stands up, he pulls a small case out of his pocket and takes out two contacts.

With a slight of hand only able to be performed with great practice, he puts them in under the guise of wiping his eyes. There is no apparent change after he puts them in, but that was the whole point.

The contact lenses were Tatsuya's idea, much to Archimedes' disgust. Tatsuya argued that these would allow Archimedes to use Necromancy without detection. Archimedes argued that his eyes turning black was a good scare tactic and "looked badass as hell." Tatsuya then responded by threatening to tell Miyuki how little Archimedes had been sleeping.

Needless to say, Tatsuya won that argument.

Archimedes walks out into the hallway, looking around for Miyuki. He doesn't see her, and so he casts Necromancy on the nearest camera. Instantly, he can see every inch of the school covered by the cameras. He finds Miyuki and begins making his way to her.

* * *

Miyuki is very annoyed right now. Not only was her Onii-sama not the representative of the incoming class, let alone a Course 1 student, but now she was being bombarded with complements and questions from random Course 1 students. She maintains a look befitting one being praised, but her patience is running thin. She has never enjoyed social events because she feels that they are waste of time, but this is a whole other level. She is surrounded by students on all sides. The closest students to her are mostly female, but she can feel the thinly veiled gazes from the male students standing on the outskirts. She is aware that she is quite beautiful and understands that draws attention, but that has never made it easier to endure the gazes directed at her. She is looking for a way to escape when she feels a firm hand grasp her hand. She turns to reprimand the person daring enough to touch her, but her features soften when she sees who has taken her hand. Archimedes is standing there, with his omnipresent smile. He bends down to her and whispers into her ear.

"Follow my lead."

Screams begin ruminating from down the hall. Archimedes' face shows a look of badly feigned shock, much to Miyuki's amusement. The students around Miyuki turn towrads the commotion to see 3 cleaning robots barreling down the hall. Shouts and screams emanate from the crowd as they all begin to run away. Archimedes pulls Miyuki into his chest and uses his already active Necromancy to create a small area filled with his Psions around Miyuki and himself, subconsciously influencing the students to avoid the two as they run away. As soon as the students vacate, the robots rush by Archimedes and Miyuki, not even ruffling their clothes. Archimedes releases Miyuki and they set out to find Tatsuya. As they walk, a pair of red eyes follows them, now even more interested in the pair than before.

* * *

As Archimedes walks down the hall with Miyuki, he keeps a close eye on the two who are following them by way of the cameras. One of them is the girl that spoke to Tatsuya and him earlier, but the boy behind her was most like a lackey of some form. He does not make any movements to show that he is aware of their presence, and does not tell Miyuki about them either. They can soon see Tatsuya in front of them, who is currently conversing with two young women. As they come up behind him, Miyuki drops a bombshell.

"Onii-sama, don't you think it is a little early to be dating your classmates?" She asks, an innocent smile gracing her lips.

Archimedes cannot help but burst out laughing. Tears fill his eyes and he doesn't even notice the disappointed look that Tatsuya gives him. Tatsuya smiles and then shoots back a comment that no one expected.

"Of course not Miyuki. But would it be safe to assume that you and Archimedes have recently begun to date?"

Miyuki flushes beet red, unable to hide her embarrassments. Archimedes on the other hand begins laughing even harder, propping himself up against the wall to keep from falling. When Archimedes finally regains his composure, Miyuki has already introduced herself to the two girls with Tatsuya.

"I'm Shiba Archimedes, Tatsuya and Miyuki's cousin."

The redhead cocks her head at this.

"Oh? You're their cousin yet Tatsuya jokes about you and Miyuki dating?"

Archimedes shakes his head as the girl with glasses blushes.

"It's only to be expected. I was adopted and I only met these two about 3 years ago. While I may be their cousin on paper, I am more like a close friend."

The redhead makes an "Oh really" face with a sadistic expression while the girl with glasses blushes even more. Archimedes turns to Tatsuya with a raised eyebrow to which is responded to with a shrug.

"Anyways, I'm Chiba Erika. It's nice to meet you Archimedes. Just call me Erika, if you don't mind."

"Not at all, keep calling me Archimedes. Three Shibas will get confusing."

Archimedes turns to the girl with glasses, who is still blushing fiercely.

"And you are?" Archimedes asks.

"S-s-shibata Mizuki! It's a pleasure to meet you! Please call me Mizuki!" She says, bowing her head to try to hide her face.

Archimedes adopts a devilish grin before putting on an innocent face.

"Are you okay, Mizuki? You look like you are running a fever."

Mizuki jerks her head up and begins to frantically wave her arms.

"Nononono! I'm fine! Don't worry about me!" She stammers out.

Archimedes feels a pinch on his shoulder and turns to see a pouting Miyuki.

"Archimedes, that was mean." She says, trying to mask her amusement with a tone of disappointment.

Archimedes shrugs and offers an innocent smile.

"I have no idea what you are talking about."

"By the way Miyuki, is your business done with the student council?"

Mayumi shakes her head from behind Archimedes and Miyuki.

"No, its fine. I am just here to say hello for today. Miyuki-san, do you mind if I call you Miyuki?"

"Not at all president."

"Alright then Miyuki, we will catch up some other day."

Mayumi bade the group goodbye, much to the male student behind her's irritation. The student tried to protest but Mayumi just brushed his concerns aside. He glared at Tatsuya and Archimedes before following after Mayumi.

* * *

The first day of classes began with Archimedes following behind Tatsuya and Miyuki on his custom motorcycle. Archimedes, instead of actually learning how to drive, built a motorcycle that he could control with his Necromancy. He follows behind at a decent speed as the two siblings sped ahead with magic. They are currently heading to Sensei Kokonoe's Temple. All three of them have very separate reasons for going to the Temple this morning. Tatsuya has training this morning, Miyuki is going to inform Sensei that she has enrolled in First High, and Archimedes is going to do some repairs on robots he gave Sensei for training purposes. When they reach the temple, Miyuki and Tatsuya head on in while Archimedes parks his motorcycle. After walking into the temple, he waves to Sensei Kokonoe before following one of the disciples to the machines needed fixing. When they arrive, his guide bows to him before making a hasty retreat back outside. He cracks his knuckles before going into a trance as he makes repairs.

* * *

He is woken out of his trance by a tap on his foot. He rolls out from under a large table shaped terminal used to train concentration and memory. He looks up to see Miyuki's face, giving her a sheepish grin. She sighs at the state he has already managed to get himself to. His silver hair is stained black in places with oil, sticking out in odd places due to grease. The white jumpsuit that he is wearing is covered in various fluids, charred in places from electrical burns.

"How is it that you manage to do this so easily? You have only been out of my sight for ten minutes." Miyuki sighs, pulling out her CAD.

"I am just good with hardware." Archimedes says cheekily, gesturing to the large amount of things he managed to fix in the small amount of time.

"I meant how you always manage to get so dirty." She says, activating a spell.

"I find that the fastest approach is not the cleanest, or safest for that manner." Archimedes says, the various things dirtying him disappearing.

"What will I do with you… Come on, it's time for breakfast."

* * *

Archimedes is laying down, sandwich in hand, staring at the sky as the other three eat while making small talk. As Archimedes takes a bite, Sensei Kokonoe's face suddenly pops into his vision. Archimedes barely manages to contain his surprise, much to Sensei's disappointment.

"And what might our resident Italian be doing? Have you shouted 'Eureka' lately?" He asks with a mocking tone.

"You still can't get over my name can you…"

"Nope. You can't really blame me though, Archimedes is a very rare name indeed. Especially in Japan."

"Uh-huh. Let me guess, that makes me all the easier to collect information on."

"Even I can't find information that doesn't exist. There is not any information on you that dates past your adoption papers. It's as if you never existed."

Archimedes shrugs, taking another bite.

"None of my concern. I am perfectly comfortable without knowing who I was before."

Kokonoe shoots him an incredulous look but does not press any further.

* * *

While most people in this age chose to use public transport over personal, Archimedes is one of the few exceptions. Archimedes preferred the freedom of his motorcycle to any other sort of transportation. Not only did it allow him to be in complete control do to his Necromancy, it also let him move without being traced. He had built his motorcycle from scratch, which let him "opt out" of all of the connective features that most vehicles have. He had also been able to call in a few favors from the Yotsubas to secure diplomatic license plates, which made cops pulling him over a nonexistent threat. As Archimedes weaved through traffic, he praised the amazing amount of luck he had come across in his current life.

Archimedes dismounts his motorcycle in a parking spot outside the school. He pulls off his helmet and shakes out his thick silver hair, stowing the helmet in a built in compartment. He locks up the bike before disengaging his Necromancy and slipping his contacts in. He walks up to the school, not a care in the world. He never worries about anyone attempting to steal his bike because no one other than him can actually use it, making it useless to anyone other than him. He walks across the courtyard of the school at a brisk pace, the white coat of his uniform billowing out behind him. His shoulders are squared and his hair reflects the morning light, catching the gaze of many onlookers. He makes a beeline straight to his class, taking his assigned seat. He powers up his terminal, casting Necromancy and quickly filling out all of the requirements for the first day before doing a bit of snooping through the school database. He doesn't find anything of interest, other than the amount of hits that Tatsuya's student account has received. He shakes his head at the unwanted attention that his friend is getting, glad in the fact that he chose to skew his test results to be at the very bottom of Miyuki's class. He smiles at Miyuki as she sits down beside him, but does not listen to what the teacher is saying. Instead, he is going through the files of different students the Yotsubas marked to be points of interest, learning their grades, habits, and extracurricular activities. He sticks a NFC tag on the bottom of the terminal, allowing him to wireless transfer the files he wants to a small hard drive in his pocket. All of these actions are completely untraceable, as Archimedes is controlling the tracing programs and is erasing all evidence of him accessing this information. After this is done, he removes the tag and logs out of the terminal, dispelling his Necromancy.

* * *

Archimedes yawns and stretches as Miyuki taps his shoulder. He looks up at her with glassy eyes, to which causes her to giggle and grin. Archimedes can feel the gazes of both male and female students tearing into him with jealousy, but he shrugs them off.

"You really aren't cut out for school, are you Archimedes?" Miyuki asks.

Archimedes shrugs.

"Meh, I am sure I'll find something to entertain me. Although you would probably be happier if I didn't, this way you can at least verify that I am getting sleep." Archimedes responds with a sly grin.

Miyuki shakes her head exasperatedly.

"Come on. Let's just go have lunch."

Archimedes nods and stands up before walking out with Miyuki. As they walk, Archimedes notices a large group of people following them.

"Um… Miyuki?" He whispers.

"Just ignore them please. I really don't want to think about it."

"I know something that can help get some of them off our tail."

"By all means."

Archimedes drapes one arm over Miyuki's shoulders, causing her to falter for a moment. She quickly regains her composure after realizing that Archimedes meant nothing by it other than trying to help her out.

Sure enough, the sound of tongues clucking is heard and several of the young men following them disengage.

As they enter the cafeteria, Miyuki immediately makes a beeline for Tatsuya, leaving Archimedes to dread the outcome as the students continue to follow them. The encounter goes about how Archimedes expects. The course 1 students begin to make a fuss and Tatsuya decides to leave to avoid conflict. Archimedes manages to secure a table only big enough for two people, much to the students following them's disappointment. Archimedes takes this time to calm Miyuki down and keep her from freezing the entire cafeteria. Eventually, he convinces her that some people will just not ever understand and promises that he will make dinner tonight so that Miyuki can spend some more time with Tatsuya.

* * *

Archimedes is silently cursing the world due to the situation going on around him that could not have been much worse. Tatsuya's classmates are currently facing off against the students who had been following Miyuki all day. Said students are making a fuss about Miyuki leaving. Tatsuya's classmates are arguing that they have no right to demand Miyuki to do something. While Tatsuya and Miyuki are standing back behind Tatsuya's classmates, Archimedes managed to get himself in the middle of everything.

Literally between the two sides.

With one side carrying CADs in relatively plain sight.

Archimedes assumed that Tatsuya's classmates had CADs, but chose not to rely on that assumption.

"Please, can we just leave it at 'Good-bye' for now and pick this up tomorrow? I am sure we are all tired after our first day of school so our judgement may be clouded. Lets not do anything we may regret later." Archimedes urges.

The boy who appears to be leading this small group hesitates for a moment before responding.

"I don't understand why you are supporting this! We can't let a bloom, especially the class representative, hang out with weeds!" He spits.

Archimedes shakes his head.

"You did not answer my question. Do you intend to continue down this course of action? Or will you step down for now and speak with Miyuki tomorrow?" Archimedes asks, his voice low and sharpened by countless hours of training with his grandfather.

The boy steps back for a moment, but soon retakes his ground.

"Explain why you are supporting this first! Shiba-san is your girlfriend after all!" He demands.

Archimedes sighs.

"Morisaki, correct?"

"Yes?"

"You are far less observant than I would expect of someone of your lineage. Tell me, what is my name?"

Morisaki is too taken aback to respond at first.

"You're name is Shiba Archimedes. Did you forget or something?"

Archimedes shakes his head once again.

"You're tongue may be sharp, but your wit would appear to be lacking. Tell me, what are their names?" He asks, gesturing to Tatsuya and Miyuki.

"Shiba Miyuki and Shiba Tatsuya." Morisaki answers, face unwavering.

Archimedes waits for a moment before throwing his hands up into the air in defeat and walking away.

"Wait! Don't just walk away! What do you think you are doing?"

"Erika, would you mind taking care of this? This man is far too dimwitted for me to even hold a logical conversation with."

Erika nods.

"Some boy-friend you are, giving up on Shiba-san already?" Morisaki jeers.

"Idiot! Archimedes isn't Miyuki's boyfriend! He is Tatsuya and Miyuki's cousin!"

"If you guys don't mind, I am going to go and get the ingredients for tonight's dinner." Archimedes says as he walks towrads Miyuki and Tatsuya.

"Go ahead. Onii-sama and I will take care of this." Miyuki says with a charming smile.

* * *

Archimedes hears an electronic chime as the siblings arrive at the house. Archimedes is in the kitchen, tending to several different stoves and a grill. The smell of cooking meat and vegetables fills the air, providing a pleasant but not overbearing scent. Miyuki and Tatsuya enter the kitchen after changing into more causal clothing. Miyuki is wearing a pale blue tank top with a pair of short white shorts. Tatsuya is wearing his standard black tee shirt and grey jeans. Archimedes on the other hand, is wearing a full on chef's outfit, complete with an apron and a monogrammed hat.

"I still can't believe you actually bought that." Tatsuya says dryly.

"Oi! I don't see the food complaining so neither should you!" Archimedes fires back as he sautés some mushrooms while adding some olive oil.

Miyuki giggles at the sight of Archimedes preparing food in such a precise and delicate manner.

"No matter how many times you cook, you still look very out of place in the kitchen." She says with a grin.

"You can't expect me to have lived with my father, the master chef, without at least learning how to cook."

"I think this goes a bit further than just learning how to cook." Tatsuya adds.

"Alright, maybe I do enjoy cooking just a little bit..."


	5. Chapter 5

**Alright, before you guys go all "WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT! UNFOLLOW!" let me explain. The obscene amount of dialogue involving Tatsuya's battle with Hattori was something that I felt that just going "Archimedes zoned out" would be a tough pill to swallow. So, I put the dialogue in. I apologize if you do not like this, but I felt that it was the lesser of two evils. This will not be a habit of mine as I find it terribly boring, so expect lots of original dialogue and progression in the coming chapters... I will explain more after the story...**

Archimedes looks up from his mobile terminal as he hears a cheery voice call "Tasuya-kun~~" from behind him. He turns to see Mayumi running towards them.

"Good morning Tatsuya-kun, as well as to Miyuki and Archimedes." She says, her head bobbing as she comes to a stop.

"Good morning, President." Tatsuya responds.

Miyuki bows to Mayumi while Archimedes gives her a quick wave before turning back to his terminal. Mayumi puffs her cheeks out a bit at this but is quickly distracted by talking to Tatsuya and Miyuki. Archimedes leans against a nearby wall and sighs, getting into a more comfortable reading position. After a bit, he sees a red tuft of hair dart in front of his vision.

"What'cha doing?" Erika asks, squinting at Archimedes' terminal.

"Just doing some light reading."

"Light reading? It looks like Greek to me."

"That's because it is Greek. Ancient Greek that is." Archimedes sighs.

"You can read Ancient Greek?"

"No, I just think it looks pretty." Archimedes says sarcastically.

Erika shoots Archimedes a dirty look but continues to probe him.

"What is it about?"

"Ritual ceremonies performed by the Greeks and the Pagans of that time."

"Why?"

"Because there might be something useful hidden in the information. All of the different curses and sacrifices they did may have some connection to today's magic."

Erika looks at him with a bored look.

"And this is for fun?"

"Yes?"

"I will never get you nerd types." She says cheerfully, slipping away before Archimedes can respond.

Archimedes shakes his head in resignment at Erika's actions. He had told her the truth, but not the whole truth. He was looking through ancient texts, but not for connections to modern day magic. He was looking for connections to his necromancy. While he remembered how to use Necromancy and his limitations, that's about all he could remember on the matter. "Regaining memories" of how to use Necromancy is a bit misleading. Instead of him remembering Necromancy in words, pictures, and sounds; regaining the ability to use Necromancy was more like remembering how to move a muscle he forgot he had. Once he remembered, it became a reflexive action, as natural as breathing.

Everything that Archimedes knew about the runes that he used was from his own research. Languages came easily to him, making the main hurdles for him being the sheer amount of documents he had to comb through and the lack of actual relevance of said documents. Unsurprisingly, there were no real named accounts of "Necromancy" until the dark ages, but even then it was rarely anything useful. So, Archimedes worked backwards from the runes on his ring and body. Archimedes knew that each rune must have a meaning, that it could not just be gibberish. But he had no Rosetta stone to reveal all the secrets to him.

But, that did not mean that his quest was hopeless. Image recognition had grown in usability since the early 2000's, allowing for Archimedes to cross reference the runes on his ring and body across many databases. Slowly, he had pieced together the runes and been able to use them for various applications. The most notable being his robots. The runes allowed Archimedes to strengthen his robots and make them maneuverable enough for live combat. But, this was all years ago; only a little while after he discovered his Necromancy. Now, he was searching for anything that had to do with Necromancy everywhere from Ancient Babylon to International news headlines.

He knew that the Yotsubas were doing similar investigations but he still searched in his every spare moment. He is spurred out of his reprieve as the group begins walking again, still reading the Greek tablet on his terminal.

"Archimedes." He hears Tatasuya say.

"Hmm?"

"I would like you to accompany Miyuki and me to the student council room during lunch." Tatsuya orders, strumming his right index finger on his leg.

Archimedes nods, twisting his ring in response.

Tatsuya had signaled that he wanted Archimedes to retrieve information from the terminal in the student council room. Archimedes was happy to oblige, he was carrying a hard drive in a concealed pocket inside of his jacket. They all continued to the school, everyone else none the wiser of Tatsuya and Archimedes' plan.

* * *

"Excuse us." Tatsuya says, opening the door as he shields Miyuki with his body.

Archimedes is behind Miyuki, looking up and down the empty hall to appease Tatsuya's paranoia. They walk into the room, Miyuki now taking the lead. As she passes by Tatsuya, Archimedes sees Tatsuya throw the small NFC tag at the terminal. The tag lodges itself directly beneath it, none the wiser of their actions. Archimedes casts his Necromancy as they sit down at the table, rooting through the files at an inhuman speed.

"Archimedes?" He hears the sing-song voice of the president ask.

"Ah, yes. Sorry, I zoned out for a bit." Archimedes says apologetically, still rooting through files.

"Are you going to eat your lunch? You haven't moved since we sit down."

"Yes, don't worry about me. Please, continue what you were doing."

"So... Miyuki, I hope you can enter the Student Council. Are you willing to accept?"

Archimedes only pays only a small bit of attention to the conversation going on around him. He picks up a piece of steak with his chopsticks and pops it into his mouth.

"President, are you aware of Onii-sama's entrance examination scores?"

*Gack* *Cough* *Cough*

Archimedes began to choke on the piece of steak, completely blindsided by Miyuki's question. Several error messages pop up on the terminal as Archimedes struggles for air. When he finally composes himself, he quickly closes all of the messages and waves off the worried looks.

"Hm, I know of it. Truly incredible... To be honest, when I stole a glance at the teacher's results, even I lost confidence."

"...If the student council accepts students with high test scores and outstanding abilities, I believe Onii-sama fits the criteria as well."

"Wait, Mi-"

"And in terms of Desk Work, I believe that has nothing to do with practical skills and grades. In other words, knowledge and judgment are more important."

Archimedes had to admit that Tatsuya did excel at work others deemed boring. Nevertheless, Miyuki not allowing the other person to finish their sentence and bulling right over them was something Archimedes had not seen before. It further surprised him that she did this to her beloved "Onii-Sama."

"I am honored to receive an invitation to the Student Council. I would be more than happy to accept even the lowest position, but is there any way for Onii-sama to join?"

"Alas, this is not possible."

The one who answered was not the President, but the council member sitting to her side.

"Student Council members must be selected from Course 1 students. This is not an unwritten rule, but an enumerated one. This is the only clause that is attached to the right of appointment and removal for the president. To change this requires a special amendment meeting with the attendance of the full student body and carried by a two-thirds majority. Since the number of Course 1 and Course 2 students are practically equal, this is realistically impossible." The girl said softly.

"...I apologize. I said all of that without understanding the situation. Please forgive me." Miyuki said as she rose to her feet and bowed deeply in apology.

"In that case, Miyuki will join the current Student Council with the title of secretary, is that acceptable?"

"Yes, I will work hard to fulfill my duties. Please look after me."

Miyuki lowered her head again, but this time was more polite than apologetic. Mayumi nodded at Miyuki with a smile on her face.

"You can get the details from A-chan."

"As I just said, President... Please stop calling me A-chan..."

"If there are no complications, can you come today after school?" Mayumi said, paying no mind to Azuna's protests.

"Miyuki."

"I understand. However, would it be fine for me to come here after school?"

"Of course. I'll wait for you, Miyuki."

"Hey~. Why am I called 'A-chan', while Shiba is called 'Miyuki'...?"

"...There is still a little time left until the end of lunch break. May I say something?" A voice that Archimedes hasn't heard yet asks.

Mayumi nods and the girl continues.

"The roster for the Public Moral Committee still has one empty spot that has not been filled."

"I just said that we are still reviewing possible candidates. Besides, school just started a week ago, right? There's no need to hurry, Mari."

"I think, according to the rules of the student council, all members aside from the president must be Course 1 students, right?"

"Yes."

"Only Course 1 students are allowed to fill the positions of Vice President, Accountant, Secretary, and related roles, right?"

"Yes. The rules stipulate that the council is made up of the President, Vice president, Accountant, and Secretary roles."

"In other words, there is no restriction for bringing a Course 2 student into the Public Moral Committee."

"Mari, you..."

Mayumi drawls off before slamming one hand on to the table.

"NICE!"

"Ah?"

Tatsuya lets out a small sound of surprise at the situation that was quickly spiraling out of his control.

"Yes, there's no problem with the Public Moral Committee. Mari, the Student Council nominates Shiba Tatsuya as Public Moral Committee member."

"Wait a minute! Shouldn't you take into account my thoughts on the matter? Also, you haven't told me what the duties of a Public Moral Committee member consists of."

"We didn't really go into detail about your sister's duties on the Student Council..."

"Eh, Rin-chan, this is fine. Tatsuya-kun, the job of the Public Moral Committee is to uphold the public moral on campus."

"..."

"..."

"...Is that all?"

"While the job doesn't come with any sense of accomplishment, and is also quite troublesome... Err, it's still a rewarding task?"

"I can make you a medal if you want." Archimedes adds cheekily, tapping his ring against the table to signal that he had started to download the data.

"That wasn't what I meant." Tatsuya says, his eyes returning to Mari.

"Hm?"

The room goes silent for a moment and Archimedes watches Tatsuya scanning each person across from him with a steely glare. A small squeak is heard as his gaze settles on Azuna.

"Um, our school's Public Moral Committee is an organization that is responsible for policing those who break school rules."

—Just like her outer appearance, Azusa was weak to pressure.

"In terms of public morals, they usually consist of things like uniform regulations or tardiness, but these are handled by the members appointed by the Self-Governing Committee."

She pauses for a moment.

"...Um, do you have any questions?" She asks nervously.

"No, please continue."

"Ah, OK. The primary duties of the Public Moral Committee are to identify those that use magic against school rules and to subjugate those that use magic on campus to cause a disturbance. After the Public Moral Committee member decides the necessary punishment, he or she will present before the Disciplinary Committee alongside the President and Student Representative. In short, they are both the police and the prosecutor."

"Isn't that wonderful, Onii-sama."

"No, Miyuki... Please wait a little before giving off that 'Then it's decided' look in your eyes... Just in case, let me clarify a few things."

"Clarify what?"

"According to the earlier explanation, the Public Moral Committee member's mission is to halt any conflicts upon discovery, correct?"

"Well, that's true. We also intercede on non-magical conflicts."

"Also, if magic was used, our intervention is mandatory."

"If possible, it'd be best if the conflict was resolved prior to use of magic."

"That's my point! My technical grade is terrible, and on top of that, I'm a Course 2 student!

"It's not a problem."

"What are you saying?"

"In competitions of power, I will handle it... Lunch break is almost over. Let's save the rest for after school, any objection?"

It was true that lunch break was about to end, and Tatsuya looked at Archimedes for a moment. Archimedes nods, signaling that he has the data.

"...I understand."

"Hmm... But it would seem we are still leaving one out..." Mayumi says, looking Archimedes up and down.

"Um... What?" Archimedes asks, dispelling his Necromancy as the download completes.

Mayumi's eyes stop on the bento Archimedes brought.

"What's that?" She asks, gesturing to the bento.

"Oh, this is just the leftovers from the dinner I made last night."

"You can cook?"

"My father owns one of the highest rated restaurant in all of Japan, I picked some things up."

"May I try some then?" Mayumi asks with an innocent smile.

"Sure?"

Archimedes slides the bento to Mayumi. She looks over it for a moment before picking up a piece of steak. She puts it in her mouth and her eyes light up.

"Archimedes!" She shouts, standing up abruptly.

"Yes?"

"I hereby add the honorary position of 'Chef' to the council roster. You will serve as the first person to hold this office."

"But..."

Mayumi slides the bento to Mari, who also takes a bite. Her eyes light up in a similar fashion.

"Archimedes! You will hold the office of 'Chef!'"

"Wait, are you two threatening me?"

They share a glance before turning on Archimedes once again.

"Yes." They reply blandly.

Archimedes looks to his left to get help from Tatsuya, but his gaze is blocked by Miyuki wearing a pleading smile.

Archimedes sighs in resign.

"Fine. But don't expect individual meals."

* * *

"No, Mayumi. I am not going to be the official manservant of the student council. Think of another wager." Archimedes sighs, dealing out a deck of cards between himself and Mayumi.

"But you would look so cute in a butler uniform!" Mayumi protests.

"You are lucky that I 'agreed' to be the chef. Don't push it."

Mayumi's rebuttal is averted by the door opening. Tatsuya and Miyuki step in. Almost immediately, the air is filled with hostility emanating from the Vice-President.

"Excuse us!"

Despite this Tatsuya maintained his poker face, bowed in silence, and with that the hostile gaze dissipated like rainclouds before the sun. Even then, it wasn't as if the hostility had disappeared completely, more like the previous hostile gaze was now directed in a more favorable light towards Miyuki, who was now standing in the front. Hattori stands up and walks towards her with carefully measured steps.

"I am the Vice President, Hattori Gyoubu. Shiba Miyuki, welcome to the Student Council." He says, his voice shaking a bit.

Miyuki responds with a slight bow.

Hattori returned to his seat while completely ignoring Tatsuya.

"Ah, you're here."

"Welcome, Miyuki. You too, Tatsuya-kun. Good work."

Archimedes is currently sitting in a chair across from Mayumi, thus causing him to have to turn in his seat to greet his cousins.

"Archimedes? Why are you already here and not with Miyuki?" Tatsuya asks.

"A certain 'President' came and got me out of my class because she was bored. Sadly, the teacher was fine with it because I have already finished all my work for the next few weeks. Since then, I have been Mayumi's plaything…"

"Ah, don't worry about Archimedes, he is just being silly. A-chan, if you please." Mayumi says while giving Archimedes a grin that sent shivers down his spine.

"...Yes."

It appeared that she already gave up. For a moment, Azusa's head drooped with a sad expression before she put on a wooden smile and led Miyuki towards the terminal on the side.

"Well, let's be off." Mari says, gesturing to Tatsuya.

"Where to?"

"Public Moral Committee headquarters. There's a lot of things you need to see firsthand to understand. It's located directly underneath this room. That being said, they're both connected."

"Go fish~~" Mayumi says cheerfully.

After Mari finished speaking, Tatsuya took a breath before replying.

"...That's quite the strange design."

"I thought so too."

As she was saying this, Mari began to stand up. But just as she was about to leave the chair, a comment stopped her.

"Watanabe-senpai, please wait a minute."

The voice came from Vice President Hattori. Upon hearing this, Mari replied in a manner that was both offensive and respectful at the same time.

"Is something the matter, Hattori Gyoubushoujou Hanzou?"

"Please don't address me by my full name!"

"Then let's go with Vice President Hattori Hanzou."

"Please call me Hattori Gyoubu!"

"That's your family's official title, isn't it."

"It has nothing to do with the title now. The school has already accepted the name 'Hattori Gyoubu'! ...No, that's not what I wanted to say."

"That's because you're too formal, isn't it?"

"Ok, ok, Mari, Hanzou also has things he won't back down from."

Everyone's gaze fell towards the speaker, Mayumi.

Archimedes gives Mayumi a Cheshire cat grin, to which she cocks her head in confusion at.

"Go fish." Archimedes says, not breaking his smile.

This interruption gives Hattori the time he needs to regroup.

"Watanabe-senpai, the topic I wanted to speak with you about is precisely regarding the replacements for the Public Moral Committee."

"What?"

"I object to you appointing this 1st Year student to the Public Moral Committee."

When Hattori stated his opinion, he was either perfectly calm, or was forcibly holding his emotions in check.

Mari's eyebrows wrinkled slightly, and that did not appear to be an act.

"What is this nonsense? The one who nominated Shiba Tatsuya-kun is President Saegusa. Even though it was verbal, the right of appointment remains with her alone."

"I have heard that the receiving party has not agreed. Despite the nomination, the matter is unofficial until he personally agrees."

"That is up to Shiba Tatsuya-kun himself. The President has already elaborated on the decision of the Student Council. The final decision is his, not yours."

Mari's eyes were on Hattori while she said this.

Hattori never looked at Tatsuya. Or maybe it would be more correct to say that he was ignoring Tatsuya's presence.

Watching these two people, Suzune was very calm, Azusa was very nervous, and Mayumi was completely unreadable, sitting while playing cards with Archimedes.

"Go fish~~"

Miyuki was staring at the terminal on the side with a subtle expression on her face. However, she was probably a hair trigger away from exploding at any time.

"There is no precedence for appointing a Weed to the Public Moral Committee."

Hattori's rebuttal was laced with the derogatory term. Upon hearing this, Mari slightly raised an eyebrow.

"That's a taboo term, Vice President Hattori. A taboo term as banned by the Public Moral Committee. You have a lot of nerve using that in front of me, the Chair of the Public Moral Committee."

Facing Mari's reprimand, warning, or maybe a little of both, Hattori showed no sign of weakness.

"You can ban that term all you want. Do you plan on punishing a third of the entire student body? The difference between Blooms and Weeds is something that is written into the school system and acknowledged by the school itself. The source of the difference between Blooms and Weeds is the difference in ability. Public Moral Committee members are responsible for the task of subjugating students that break school rules. A Weed with inferior abilities is incapable of accomplishing that task."

To Hattori's proud assertion, Mari only smiled coldly.

"It is true that the Public Moral Committee is ability-based, but ability comes in many forms. If we need to use strength for suppression, that's what I'm here for. Even if I'm up against 10 or even 20 opponents, I can handle them alone. In this school, the only people that can go 1 on 1 against me are President Saegusa and Club Management Group Leader Juumonji. According to you, the people with low combat capability are unnecessary. So, do you plan to challenge me, Vice President Hattori?"

The only way that Mari would say this was because of her confidence and combat record. However, despite slightly backing down before this enormous pressure, Hattori had no plans to surrender.

"This isn't my problem. It's about his ability to adapt."

The bottom line was that Hattori believed his stance was correct. Course 2 students with inferior abilities could not handle the responsibilities of the Public Moral Committee that were so heavily reliant on ability. The fact that no Course 2 student had ever been appointed to the Public Moral Committee also supported this.

In spite of this, Mari's confidence surpassed Hattori.

"Did I not say that ability comes in many forms? Tatsuya-kun can read the activation sequence and thus accurately predict the magic being invoked with his eyes and brain."

Archimedes falters at this, inadvertently showing his hand to Mayumi.

'How did they figure this out? Do they know about Tatsuya's Elemental Sight? This could be very bad...'

"...What did you say?"

Upon hearing this unexpected detail, Hattori reflexively asked. Rather than saying this was unexpected, it would be more appropriate to say this was impossible to believe.

"In other words, even before the magic has been invoked, he already knows what magic his opponent is using."

However, Mari's answer did not change.

"According to our school rules, depending on the type of magic used, the level of punishment also changes. Unfortunately, if we were to disrupt the activation sequence before invocation like Mayumi did, there is no way to tell what magic was originally used. If we waited until the activation sequence finished, then that would defeat the entire purpose. Thus it is safer to disrupt magic during the activation sequence. Without any definite accusation of wrong doing, the only thing we can charge them with is attempted disruption and the subsequent lighter punishment. But with Tatsuya, we can properly catch those that have been using stronger magics."

"...But, if he ran across an actual crime scene, and was unable to stop the magic invocation..."

Hattori could not overcome his shock, but still managed to rebut.

"In that case, it would be beyond a 1st Year Course 1 student anyways. And probably beyond 2nd Year students as well. How many people do you know that are able to invoke second and still manage to deny their opponent from invoking first? Besides that, there is still one more reason I want him to join the Public Moral Committee."

Mari tabled the first reason and started another.

No matter what, Hattori couldn't come up with a counter argument on the spot.

"To this day there is no Public Moral Committee member that comes from Course 2 students. In other words, Course 2 students that improperly use magic against school rules are apprehended by Course 1 students. As you said, there is a wide divide between Course 1 and Course 2 students. Course 1 students can apprehend Course 2 students, but the reverse is not true. This configuration has only served to widen that divide. I do not like it that the committee members under my command are only serving to widen this differential impression."

"Ah... Quite impressive, Mari. You have even taken this into account? I thought you only cared about Tatsuya-kun."

"Please be quiet, President."

Mayumi wanted to change the surrounding atmosphere, but was stopped by Suzune.

Archimedes silently curses to himself as Mayumi continues her streak.

"President... as the Vice-President, I object to appointing Shiba Tatsuya as a Public Morals Committee member.

While I accept that Chair Watanabe has got a point in her assertion, the original mission of a Public Morals Committee member is to uncover and subjugate the school rule breakers.

A Course 2 student who is lacking in magic ability can't perform the duties of a Public Morals Committee member. Such a misplaced appointment will surely damage your reputation as the President.

Please reconsider."

"Please wait!"

'Nononono. Miyuki, this is not the time or place for your bro-con!'

"This may sound audacious, Vice-President. My brother's practical magic results may indeed be unfavorable, but that was merely because the practical test was not effective in gauging my brother's strength.

In a real battle, my brother would not lose to anyone."

On hearing those words that were filled with certainty, Mari's eyes widened a little. Mayumi's faint smile disappeared as well, and her serious eyes turned towards Miyuki and Tatsuya.

Archimedes was silently weeping into the table.

However, the seriousness in the gaze Hattori returned on Miyuki became thinner.

"Shiba-san."

The one Hattori was addressing was, needless to say, Miyuki.

"Regardless of what happens, a Magician must make judgments calmly and logically. Individual bias may be unavoidable for a normal person, but for one who is aiming to become a Magician, please bear in mind that you should not let your individual bias cloud your judgment."

There was no kindness felt in the admonishment. He was probably just acting as an excellent "Upperclassman", who despite his self-righteousness, was looking after his junior of the same Course 1. —But, under these circumstances, such a manner of speaking caused the opposite effect, and the moment when Miyuki would rebuke Hattori.

Sure enough, Miyuki was getting increasingly heated up.

"Pardon me for saying so, but my judgment is not clouded! If Onii-sama could use more of his power—"

"Miyuki."

Tatsuya held his hand out in front of Miyuki, who had completely lost her cool.

With a startled face, Miyuki shut her mouth with a mix of embarrassment and regret, and hung her head in shame.

Having stopped Miyuki's words with a wave of his hand, Tatsuya walked up to Hattori.

Miyuki had indeed said too much. She had almost said the things that shouldn't be said. However, it was Hattori who had made Miyuki say that much.

"Vice-President Hattori, why don't we have a mock battle?"

"What...?"

The people who were lost for words from the surprise request were not limited to the challengee, Hattori, alone.

Mayumi, and also Mari, looked at the two of them in dumbfounded amazement from the unexpected daring retaliation.

Archimedes accidently tipped his hand again, showing Mayumi his cards.

'Tatsuya... I can cover for a lot, but this is going too far...'

Under everyone's gaze, Hattori's body started quivering.

"Don't be too conceited, for a mere reserve!"

The one who gave a small shriek was Azusa.

The other three, as expected of upperclassmen, remained composed.

And then, a small wry smile surfaced on the troubled face of the one who was getting verbally abused.

"What's so funny?!"

"A Magician should remain calm, right?"

"Kuh!"

Having his own words thrown back at him in ridicule, Hattori held his breath.

Tatsuya didn't stop there.

"As it is, I think that we won't know each other's anti-personnel battle skill without fighting.

It's not like I want to become a Public Morals Committee member but... if it's for proving that my little sister's judgment is not clouded, then it cannot be helped."

He seemed to be mumbling to himself.

To Hattori, it sounded like a challenge.

"...Fine. I'll give you a good lesson on what it is to know your place."

It was not just his mouth that had betrayed his agitation. His controlled tone, on the contrary, indicated the depth of his anger.

Without a moment's delay, Mayumi interjected.

"As the Student Council President, I authorize the formal mock battle match between 2nd Year Class B, Hattori Gyoubu and 1st Year Class E, Shiba Tatsuya."

"On the basis of the Student Council President's declaration, as the Chair of Public Morals Committee, I recognize that the match between the two of you as a legitimate extracurricular activity in abidance of the school rules."

"The time of the match will be thirty minutes from now, at the third practice room. The match will be a private one, and I authorize the use of CADs by both sides."

It was a measure to prevent the match from becoming a brawling incident — an act of violence forbidden by the school rules.

On the declaration from Mayumi and Mari with solemn expressions and nonchalant voices, Azusa started typing furiously into the terminal.

Archimedes sighs and sets his cards down, pulling out his terminal and punching some commands in.

* * *

"It's just the third day of school, and my cat is going to be out of the bag, huh..."

After retrieving his CAD case in exchange for the approval letter stamped with the student council president's stamp (even now, this sort of thing was still done on paper), Tatsuya grumbled just before the door to the third practice room, and from behind him, came a voice that was on the verge of tears.

"I'm really sorry..."

"It's nothing you need to apologize for."

"But Onii-sama, it's because of my fault that I'm causing trouble for you again..."

Turning around, and taking half a step, Tatsuya held his hand above his little sister's head.

Miyuki's body trembled as she closed her eyes. But, after feeling the gentle pat on her head, she timidly looked up.

Even now, her tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

"I said this too during the school entrance ceremony, right?

I always feel that I'm being saved by you whenever you get angry in my place, when I am unable to get angry myself.

...Don't apologize. Now is the time to say something more appropriate."

"Yes... please do your best."

Wiping off a tear with a finger, Miyuki smiled, and in similar fashion, Tatsuya smiled and nodded.

"Great. You two have made up. Now Tatsuya, let's talk about what you are going to do." Archimedes says cheerlessly, engrossed in working on Tatsuya's CADs.

A small robot is holding Tatsuya's black CAD case up in front of Archimedes as he makes small adjustments to one of the CADs.

"Alright, I have limited the power of this thing so that you do not accidentally go overboard. I know that I don't need to tell you this, but, you need to end this as quickly as possible. By the same token, I do not want you showing off much of your power. It's already problematic that they know you can read the activation sequences."

Archimedes closes the case with a small metallic snap before handing it to Tatsuya and dismissing the robot. Tatsuya nods before opening the door.

"This is surprising."

Upon opening the door, this was the line said to him.

"What is?"

The one who was receiving Tatsuya at the door, was the appointed judge for this match, Mari.

"I was referring to your unexpected enthusiasm at fighting. I thought you were one who wasn't bothered by the remarks of others."

Even while she was talking about her surprise, her eyes were sparkling with anticipation. A deep sigh welled up in his throat, but Tatsuya, with his steel-like self-restraint — describing it in this manner may be a little exaggerating but — swallowed it anyway.

"I thought it was the job of a Public Morals Committee member to stop personal fights."

Instead of a sigh, he couldn't help but let loose a somewhat sarcastic remark.

While there was not a single sign of Mari rebutting that.

"This is not a personal fight. It's a formal match.

Mayumi said it too, didn't she?

The rule of strength is not something applied between the Course 1 and Course 2 students. Rather, it is something applied between Course 1 students themselves.

This is the very first time we are using such a method to settle things between a Course 1 and Course 2 student, you see."

"Didn't the number of 'formal matches' increase ever since you became the Chair of the Public Morals Committee, senpai?"

"Indeed, it did increase."

Her calm attitude caused not just Tatsuya, but even Miyuki who was waiting behind him to smile wryly. Archimedes, however, had already been called over by Mayumi.

"Yes, Mayumi? What do you want?" Archimedes asks, ignoring the hostile gaze from Hattori.

"Oh, nothing~~ I just thought that we could make this interesting."

"President!" Azusa pleads in a soft voice.

"Don't worry A-Chan, it's not like we are betting money or anything! Just think of it as an agreement between friends~~"

Azusa sighs, giving up on this one sided argument.

"Sorry. I am not going bet against you in this fight." Archimedes says, leaning back against the wall.

"Oh? And why is that?" Mayumi asks, circling in front of Archimedes so she can see his face.

"Because I am already completely certain of who is going to win. It would be unfair to you."

Mayumi gives him an inquisitive look, slightly cocking her head. A metallic click resounds through the room, drawing everyone's attention to Tatsuya and the black case he had opened.

"Now, we just wait..." Archimedes whispers under his breath, sending chills down Mayumi's spine.

The black attaché case contained a pair of CADs in the shape of handguns.

He took out one of them, pulled out a cartridge shape from the place where a magazine would be lodged into a real gun, and exchanged it for something else.

Except for Miyuki, everyone watched him intently with deep interest.

"Sorry for the wait."

"Do you always carry additional storage cartridges with you?"

"Yes, I am unable to smoothly operate the Generalized CAD as I can't cope well with them."

All of said cartridges had been hand made by Archimedes to optimize the speed at which Tatsuya could identify and switch cartridges.

Hattori, who was standing across from him, sneered slightly upon hearing this.

"Alright, allow me to explain the rules. In terms of either direct or indirect attacks, lethal attacks are forbidden. Techniques that deal permanent disabilities to the opponent are also forbidden.

Abilities that cause direct harm to the physical body are forbidden. However, direct attacks that do not result in anything greater than bone fractures are permitted.

No weapons at any time. Unarmed combat is allowed. If you plan on using kicking techniques, please remove your shoes and change into the school's soft boots.

The condition for defeat is when the judge has determined one side is unable to continue the battle.

Both sides please move behind your respective starting lines, and do not activate your CAD until I give the signal.

Breaking the rules results in an automatic defeat. I will use my full strength to stop it, so remember that. That is all."

Both Tatsuya and Hattori nodded at this, walked towards the starting lines that were five meters apart, and stood facing one another.

Hattori's expression was more solemn than mocking or challenging, but his face still betrayed an easy-going demeanor.

The initial position was out of physical reaching distance. Even if the opponent possessed the charging power of a professional soccer player, magic was still faster at this distance. Because this was a magic-based contest, the side with the superior magical attack would naturally have the advantage.

In this situation, the one who invoked their magic first would usually win. Even if the initial attack did not completely defeat the opponent, some degree of damage was unavoidable. There were very few people that had the mental discipline to absorb magical damage and still calmly work their magic. Since sustaining magical damage also disrupted the magic creation process, as long as one continued to attack, victory was assured.

Tatsuya held a handgun-shaped Specialized CAD.

Hattori wore a traditional bracelet-shaped Generalized CAD.

Specialized CADs had the advantage in speed, while Generalized CADs had the advantage in versatility.

Nonetheless, even if Specialized CADs had a speed advantage over Generalized CADs, that alone could not overcome the difference between Course 1 and Course 2 students. And the opponent was a new student. Hattori's conclusion was likely that there was absolutely no way that he could lose, a consideration that was neither conceited nor overconfident.

But Archimedes knew better than to judge Tatsuya based on face value.

Tatsuya pointed the CAD he held in his right hand towards the floor,

And waited for Mari's signal.

Archimedes put his hands on Mayumi's shoulders and leaned down to her ear.

"I give the match 5 seconds or less." He whispers, sending electricity arcing through Mayumi's body.

The simulation room returned to complete silence.

Just as that silence was about to fill every corner of the room...

"...Begin!"

The "formal match" between Tatsuya and Hattori officially began.

Victory was decided in an instant.

Tatsuya disappeared from sight, only to show up behind Hattori with his CAD raised.

The entire match lasted less than 5 seconds, and could be appropriately described as an instant win.

In front of Tatsuya's CAD, Hattori keeled over.

"...Winner, Shiba Tatsuya."

Mari cautiously announced the name of the winner.

There was not a trace of joy on the winner's face.

That expression was appropriate for someone who had merely arrived at the expected result.

He gave a short bow, then walked towards the table that held the CAD cases.

It wasn't just his posture; he was wholly uninterested in his victory.

Archimedes had a similar disposition, never having a doubt in his mind about the outcome.

"Alright then. Let's get back to what we were doing. Mayumi and I still have a game to finish." Archimedes says, walking towards the door.

"Wait."

Mari called out.

Archimedes sighs and returns to where he was standing next to Mayumi.

"That movement right there... Did you preemptively input a Speed Ability?"

Hearing this, Mayumi, Suzune, and Azusa all began reflecting on the match.

At the moment the start signal was given, Tatsuya had moved in front of Hattori.

At the next instant, he was several meters behind Hattori's right flank.

Anyone would mistake that speed for Flash Step.

A normal human body is incapable of that sort of motion.

"The fact that that is impossible...I think Senpai is more aware of that than anyone."

It was just as Tatsuya said. As the judge, Mari was closely observing whether CADs were being activated. Not just the obvious CADs, but even for hidden CADs, the flow of psions would have been obvious to her.

"But, that?"

"That wasn't magic, that was a bona fide physical technique."

"I can testify to that as well. That is Onii-sama's physical technique. Onii-sama was mentored by Kokonoe Yakumo-sensei."

Mari held her breath. For someone as versed in combat as she was, the name Kokonoe Yakumo was quite familiar. Mayumi and Suzune did not know of Kokonoe like Mari, but they too could not hide their surprise that someone could accomplish such a feat that was normally written off as something that could only be accomplished through the aid of magic.

"I can further testify on that point. I am also a disciple of Kokonoe-sensei, albeit in a different practice. Does that about cover everything?" Archimedes asks, leaning against the doorframe.

Mayumi recovered from her astonishment. From the perspective of someone who had studied magic, she also had her own question.

"Was that attack also Ninjutsu? I thought I saw the release of Psion wave motions."

That being said, her voice and word selection had both stiffened, probably because she still hadn't completely overcome her shock.

Generally, inquiring about another Magician's unreleased abilities, or even to ask how the ability works, is against the rules. But, for someone such as Mayumi who uses Psion Bullets, for Tatsuya to use Psions that had no physical manifestation as weapons, and exactly how he managed to damage Hattori... these burning questions could not be suppressed.

"You're correct. The attack was not Ninjutsu, but based on Psion wave motions. The foundation of that Psion motion wave came from Oscillation-type Basic Single System Magic."

"Given that, I still don't understand how you knocked out Hanzou."

"Causing him to faint was enough."

"Faint? How did that happen?"

As he watched Mayumi tilt her head, Tatsuya's expression did not become more troubled as he continued to explain.

"For Magicians, Psions can be discernible just like visible light and sound waves. This is a mandatory skill for magic, but the side effect is that when Magicians are exposed to unexpected Psion wave motions, they frequently misinterpret that their bodies are swaying. This misunderstanding directly affects the physical body. The reasoning behind this is very similar to hypnotic suggestion, where people under hypnosis are induced into thinking they suffered 'burn injuries', then find out that the physical symptoms reflect their thinking. During the match, I used this illusion of 'swaying motions', causing him to feel an extreme case of seasickness."

"I can't believe it... Magicians are usually exposed to Psion wave motions, and thus become accustomed to these surges. For External Systematic Magic, both Activation Sequences and Magic Sequences are types of Psion wave motions. And yet despite this, to be able to disable a Magician through Psion surge alone, and to cause such a strong effect, exactly how..."

The one who answered Mayumi's question was Suzune.

"Compound waves."

"Rin-chan?"

Just this short sentence was not sufficient for the intelligent Mayumi to understand. Naturally, Suzune's explanation wasn't finished.

"By consecutively creating three varied vibrations, then have their intersection point at Hattori-kun's location, thus creating an equilateral surge through these powerful wave motions. To think you were capable of making such precise calculations."

"Quite the explanation, Ichihara-senpai."

However, Suzune's real question was in another area.

"Speaking of this, how were you able to consecutively invoke vibration magic 3 times? If your technical speed is so high, how come your technical score is this low?"

Ever since laying eyes on Tatsuya's CAD, Azusa could not calm down in the slightest and now tentatively offered a question.

"Tatsuya-kun, is that CAD the 'Silver Horn'?"

"Silver Horn? Silver, as in the Silver from that mysterious genius Magic Designer Taurus Silver?"

At Mayumi's question, Azusa visibly brightened.

'Shit… I forgot that someone may recognize his CAD…'

At times described as a "Device Geek", Azusa happily explained away.

"That's him! The miraculous CAD engineer associated with Four Leaves Technology, whose name, appearance, and data all remain a mystery!

The genius programmer who was the first in the world to make the Loop Cast System a reality.

Ah, Loop Cast System is the Activation Sequence that skips the step of restarting each Activation Sequence. If the Magic Sequence is the same, then the CAD no longer has to restart the Activation Sequence each time. This is done by adding a copying power to the Magic Calculation Area's execution mode, adding a copy of the Activation Sequence's last parts to the Activation Sequence itself, so Magicians can endlessly invoke magics within their ability. Although the theory existed in the past, but to calculate the Invocation Sequence and copy the Activation Sequence separately at the same time, no one could do it until now..."

"Stop! I know what Loop Cast is."

"In that case...

In that case, Silver Horn is the name of the Fully Customizable Specialized CAD developed by Taurus Silver!

Naturally, it has the best adjustments for the Loop Cast System, is able to invoke magic stably using the least amount of Magic Power, is critically acclaimed, and is especially popular among the law enforcement population.

Although it's sold on the market, but that requires a special procedure and fee! And judging from the way the barrel is longer than the traditional model, yours must be a limited edition model?! Where did you get that?"

"A-chan, calm down a little."

Maybe it was because of asthma, but Azusa's chest was heaving as her eyes were glued onto the item held in Tatsuya's hand. If Mayumi, who was well aware of Azusa's interests, hadn't been on hand to stop her, she would have probably been admiring it from a very close proximity.

On the other hand, Mayumi still had another question.

"But, Rin-chan. Isn't that strange? No matter how capable the Loop Cast CAD is, Loop Cast still can't..."

After the talking stopped, Suzune nodded as she tilted her head like Mayumi.

"That is strange.

Loop Cast is designed for consecutively casting one type of magic. Even if it is the same vibration magic, if the wavelength and number of vibrations set by the Magician changes, these would cause differences to occur within the Activation Sequence. If the Loop Cast automatically copies the original Activation Sequence, then it would be impossible to account for the differences in order to achieve 'Compounding Waves'.

If you set the number of vibrations as another variable, then it may be possible to use the same Activation Sequence to achieve 'Compounding Waves' while still accounting for all the differences. But if target, strength, time of duration are all variables, and you include number of vibrations as another variable... Don't tell me you managed to calculate all of that?"

This time even Suzune was stunned to the point of speechlessness, and under her gaze Tatsuya merely shrugged.

"It doesn't matter if it's multi-variable quantitative processing speed, calculation scale, or even interference strength. None of these are subjects that are assigned a grade."

Before Mayumi and Mari's gaze, Tatsuya remained ambivalent as he said that aloud.

"...The evaluation of magic technical skills only includes Invocation Speed, the scale of the Magic Sequence, and phenomena rewriting ability.

I see now, so the test is not capable of completely measuring a person's ability..."

With a groan, Hattori sat up and answered Tatsuya's ironic statement.

"Hanzou-kun, are you alright?"

"I'm fine!"

Mayumi bent at the waist and looked over Hattori. In response, Hattori quickly dodged the incoming face and hurriedly got to his feet.

"I see, so you were all worried about this from the beginning."

Hattori could not have said this if he had not overheard their earlier conversation.

Mayumi straightened herself, then nodded with a look of understanding on her face. Hattori was directly facing her.

"No, in the beginning I really hadn't realized!"

Still flushed in the face, he hurriedly searched for an argument.

"After I lost consciousness I was still in a hazy state... I only regained movement just now!"

Put it this way... It looked as if it was very easy to understand the underlying emotions.

"Is that so...? Then you must have understood completely what we just said?"

"...Eh, yes! Even if still hazy, my ears could still hear the words..."

It seemed like Mayumi perfectly understood the feelings Hattori held towards her.

As Tatsuya continues to stow his CAD, unwavering under the gaze of Azusa, Hattori walks up to Miyuki.

"Shiba-san."

"Yes."

Miyuki replies in a displeased tone.

Including Tatsuya, there were only three males in the room, so even if the tone was completely different from before, there was no mistaking who the speaker was.

"Earlier, I made a rude comment concerning your favoritism."

There was also no mistake in who the speaker of the voice was talking to.

"I was the one whose judgment was clouded. Please forgive me."

"I also spoke too arrogantly. Please forgive me."

Tatsuya slowly turned around.

For a second, prompting Hattori to reveal a cowed expression, but he quickly returns to a tougher stance.

During that split second of peace, was it preparation for reconciliation, or the harbinger for a rematch?

Before either possibility could occur, the moment disappeared.

In the end, Hattori only met Tatsuya's gaze briefly, before turning around.

They were going to work together in the same Student Council from now onwards, so leaving behind any bad blood would only hurt Miyuki.

"Let's head back to the Student Council Room!"

At Mayumi's words, every member began to move.

* * *

"How did you beat me so badly…" Archimedes sighs as he leans back in his chair.

"Oh, don't worry. No one can beat me at card games." Mayumi says with a smirk.

And now, you have to be the student council's manservant."

Archimedes falls back in his chair.

"I told you to change your wager." Archimedes says as he gets up and fixes his chair.

"Oh, you did? I didn't realize." Mayumi says with an innocent smile.

"Mayumi…"

"Fine! You have to be my personal manservant once a week when it is convenient for both of us."

"No."

"Too bad! That's the best offer I can give you." Mayumi says with a pout.

"…"

"…"

"Miyuki? Can you help me with this?"

Miyuki turns and gives him a sweet smile.

"I think you would look good in a butler's outfit. What's the harm?"

Archimedes desperately looks around the room for help, but eventually hangs his head in resignation.

"Fine. Whatever."

"Good! Your first day will be tomorrow!"

* * *

"What's up Tatsuya? You needed me?" Archimedes asks as he enters the Public Morals committee headquarters.

"I want you to look these over and make sure that the hardware is intact." Tatsuya responds, tossing Archimedes two old CADs.

Archimedes looks catches them, giving them a quick once over.

"I assume you want me to tune them for interference?" Archimedes asks.

Tatsuya nods in response before turning back to cleaning the room.

"Wantanabe-senpai, do you mind if I take these with me tonight and bring them back tomorrow?"

"Yeah, that's fine. Not sure what you will be able to do without equipment though…"

"Don't worry about me. My Grandfather keeps me well equipped."

"Your grandfather?"

"Yes, my grandfather. Shiba Tatsuaki."

"As in the HAR manufacturer?"

"The one and only."

* * *

Archimedes has the parts of the individual CADs spread across one of his workstations. He is very impressed with the quality of CADs' parts, but is appalled at the condition of the pieces as a whole. Dust has invaded the inner workings, making it extremely dangerous for use. There is also a buildup of residual Psions in the components, which is likely due to use without calibration. In most cases, this would render a CAD virtually useless due to the Psions hampering the casting speed. The only way to remedy this would be to replace either the components or the entire CAD. That is, for everyone other than Archimedes. Using Necromancy, Archimedes is able to take control of the CAD in question and forcibly jettison all of the built up Psions, restoring maximum functionality. He quickly calibrates the individual pieces for maximum interference before putting the CADs back together. He walks down the hall to Tatsuya's lab to hand them over for him to tune the software to his specifications.

"Hey Tatsuya! I'm done on my end now all that's left is for you… to…"

Archimedes opens the door to see Miyuki standing there clad only in pale blue lingerie, CAD in hand, and Tatsuya lying on the ground.

"I'll… Come back later…" He says before hastily closing the door and returning to his lab.

'Well. That was certainly something. I would have stayed to try to find out what happened if not for…'

Archimedes shakes his head violently, trying to dispel the images of Miyuki in only her undergarments.

'Oh no! I am definitely not going down that path. Tatsuya and I have an agreement, and I am not about to piss him off. For all my abilities, there is no way I can beat Tatsuya, let alone in a fair fight.'

Archimedes sets the two CADs down on a small table near the door before walking to the workstation where his newest robot prototype is.

'14 generations… I have been working on these for a long time… But, they may finally be able to keep up with Tatsuya and replace those idiots he has to fight alongside. Finally, these will be able to function as the immortal meat shields without causing Tatsuya undue pain. While Tatsuya is able to play off the pain, Archimedes knows how much it really affects Tatsuya. All memories are laid bare when they connect with Necromancy, the good and the bad.'

Archimedes brushes his hand over the runes carved into the skin-like polymer, the runes lighting as stray Psions flow into them.

'But, that also means that I can't fly under the JSDF's radar any longer… But, this isn't a decision I can simply make on my own…'

Archimedes pulls out his mobile terminal and maneuvers to his sparsely populated contact list. He turns on his 'Do not disturb' light and sits down at a workstation. His finger hovers over who he is about to call, debating the choice to call.

'No, this has to happen. She will understand.'

He presses the contact and the display switches to show him his camera feed. He props the terminal on a stand and sits up straight in his chair. He waits but a few moments before a chime signifies the call has gone through.

"Archimedes? To what do I owe the pleasure at this hour?" A devilishly sweet voice flows out of the speakers.

The display has changed to show a stunningly beautiful woman with long dark hair clad in a flowing kimono. Despite her stunning appearance, everything about her screams of danger in Archimedes head.

"Good evening, Auntie. I have called to discuss my involvement with the JSDF."

"Does that mean that you have completed your toys?"

"I believe so. But, even you, the illustrious Yotsuba Maya, lack the necessary resources for me to test them successfully. Without the JSDF's help, I fear that this could end badly for both myself and the Yotsubas."

Maya gives Archimedes a bewitching smile.

"Is that so? Then please, my dearest nephew, enlighten me."

**OKAY! If you made it this far... Good job, I guess? After this, Archimedes will be serving his first day as manservant before going to meet with the JSDF. Not going to say more because SPOILERS.**


	6. Chapter 6

"I need to test them in simulated combat scenarios in order to properly gauge their effectiveness, preferably with Tatsuya as they are not meant to act as an independent unit. Rather, they are meant to be an extension of Tatsuya. This would allow for more tactical moves on the battlefield on his part. I also need to test if they can pass as humans in public places. But, if we did that on our own, the government would most likely not be happy with us letting death robots walk among civilians without their permission."

"That's true.. Although, I do have further questions but it is far too late at night for that. Come see me the day after tomorrow and we will discuss this further. I assume that you would rather drive yourself rather than me sending someone?"

"You assume correctly. I will see you then, Auntie."

Maya flashes him one last radiant smile before cutting the connection.

Archimedes sighs and slips down in his seat. He never enjoyed speaking with Maya, everything about her set him on edge. As he came to a stop in the chair, he thought back to his first meeting with Maya.

* * *

Archimedes looks up at the large home as he exits the car. He is wearing his classic white ensemble complete with duster. A butler comes out and leads Archimedes through the house to where he is to meet with Maya. As they walk, Archimedes takes control of the cameras, security system, and data network. They stop outside of a large white door, which the butler pushes open before stepping to the side. Beyond the door is a large sunlit study. It is lavishly furnished, making good use of the natural sunlight. Despite all this, no space was wasted, revealing the intelligence of the owner. Near a large window, a beautiful woman was sitting in what could only be described as a throne. She has long black hair, piercing violet eyes, and is wearing a long kimono that is a similar color to her eyes. But Archimedes did not let her appearance distract him. His grandfather had warned him about her; that her devilish charm had brought many men to their knees. He came to a stop just beyond the threshold of the room, the butler shutting the doors behind him.

"Come, sit." She says, her melodic voice coiling through Archimedes head.

He sits down on the couch that she gestured to, draping one leg over the other.

Maya takes a sip of her tea before addressing him again.

"Archimedes, correct?"

"Yes. You are Yotsuba Maya, of course."

"Do you know why you are here?"

"I assume it has to do with the constant monitoring you have had me under since I was 10. If I had to guess, this meeting is for you determine whether I have worth to you or if you should eliminate me instead."

The room goes silent. All that is heard is the light chirping of birds outside. Maya's face remains in her light smile for a moment. She sets down her teacup with a soft *clink*.

Maya begins to try to stare Archimedes down, but Archimedes maintains his impassive expression. Maya continues to stare for a few moments before her face lights up in legitimate surprise. She begins to laugh; not a forced laugh meant for business, but a rich healthy laugh of someone truly amused.

"I see." She says, quickly composing herself.

"It would appear that we underestimated you a bit. We realized you were intelligent, but never thought that you already were able to play the game of verbal politics. How old are you again? 14?"

Archimedes nods.

"Alright then. Let's skip right to the problem. You are incapable of using any magic other than 'Necromancy,' is that correct?"

"Yes, that is true. I am incapable of activating a CAD myself."

"So that makes you a BS magician, useless to the Yotsubas."

"Oh, I do believe that I have worth despite being Born Specialized."

"Oh? Pray tell?"

"To start, I have a large amount of Psions. A large amount is needed to operate Necromancy successfully so we can safely assume that my genetic ancestors used a form of selective breeding to try to yield the highest Psion count possible."

"Is that so? Why is it that I see only an average amount of Psions around you then?"

"I would look around the room."

Maya raises an eyebrow but does as she is told.

She is forced to stifle a gasp at what she discovers.

Throughout the room, beach ball size clusters of Psions are floating and moving around. She is further surprised when she notices that some of the clusters are leaving and entering the room via the walls.

What she does not notice is that the networking cables in the walls are filled with Psions which are controlling and manipulating data flow.

"Alright then, you have a good amount of Psions. That doesn't change that you are a BS magician."

"Ah yes, 'Born Specialized.' What a wonderful way to put it. And I must agree once again, I am incapable of using any other magic but Necromancy. I also realize that in your mind, my magic is similar to that of Tatsuya's. But, you don't realize how little the Yotsubas understand Necromancy. The closest thing it can be compared to is Mental Interference magic. But, even then it does not completely fit the bill. You see, Necromancy does not change Eidios, it isn't even mind control or suggestion. The word that best describes the phenomenon is 'assimilation.'

You see, I do not have control over Eidios. I cannot change it myself. But, my Psions are 'special,' each one contains part of my consciousness. My moving them feels no different than moving an arm. Due to this, my Psions do not actually exist in the information dimension. Think of them like dark matter, we know they are there and can see that they have an effect on the world around them. The information dimension has set rules, rules that even magic cannot overcome. But I am an anomaly. My Psions are in a separate plane of existence, one that is able to bear weight on ours, but is not effected by the plane we exist on. To put it simply, my Psions, and by extension me, are not able to be affected by magic because doing so is against the rules of the information dimension.

But, that does not mean that I am impervious. My information cannot be changed by magical means because my Psions exist outside of the information dimension. Because of this, my Psions act as a shield from magic for me. But, that is the extent to which I can be immune to. My body still exists in this plane of existence, and abides by its rules. I can still be shot, punched, touched, crushed, etc. To put it in perspective, if someone attempted to cast a movement type spell on me, nothing would happen. But, if someone were to cast a movement spell on an object and hurl it at me, it would hit me. But, I have digressed from the original topic.

Necromancy relies on the pressure my Psions exert on the information dimension. When I activate Necromancy, it makes the Psions I am targeting with exert a large amount of pressure on the Pushions controlling my prospective host. In effect, I force his/her/its 'soul' out of the body and my Psions take over place. The 'soul' of my host can resist being forced out, but it puts considerable pressure on the host's physical body. That is why I am able to take over electronics and lesser animals so easily, they put up little to no fight. With humans, it is a bit more difficult. Human souls resist with incredible strength, like a cornered animal. I have found that the only way to take over a human is when they are dead or unconscious. But, after I have taken the host, I have access to everything and more than they were able to perceive. I can search through memories, fight, and even go past the body's physical limits if I so desire. But living creatures are still not my preferred host. My consciousness occupies their body, the same way you occupy yours right now. I feel everything that the body feels.

Every cut.

Every bruise.

Every broken bone.

I feel all the physical pain they feel at the time, be it inflicted prior to my takeover or during.

So every mangled corpse I raise causes me to feel the pain of their mortal wounds.

I experience death with every corpse I raise."

Archimedes maintains a completely expressionless face throughout this. His voice does not waver, nor does his body language communicate pain or suffering.

Maya searches his face for any sign of breaking, instead she finds something that makes her stomach drop like a rock.

"You have Necromancy cast right now, don't you?" Maya asks.

Archimedes closes his eyes before opening them again slowly.

Sure enough, his eyes are a sea of darkness, save for his Crimson irises.

The room plunges into darkness, large security plates slamming down in front of the windows.

Maya immediately casts Meteor Stream.

Immediately after, two crimson orbs appear in her vision.

"I told you this, magic does not work on me."

Maya focuses her magic to converge on the entity before her.

But, according to the information dimension, there was no entity in front of her.

In fact, the space where Archimedes should be standing is completely void, the space didn't exist in the information dimension.

The two orbs continue to stare at her, unwavering.

Maya silently curses and instead focuses her magic to fire in a straight line in front of her, thinking that it would pass through Archimedes even though she could not target him.

A single beam of light appears, aimed directly between the two mocking orbs.

The beam paints a small dot between the two orbs.

But the orbs do not move.

The beam, instead of destroying Archimedes as it touched him, stops where it intersects the void.

"Now that you have confirmed what I have said is true, can we continue with planning our deal?"

The orbs disappear and the lights come back on, sunlight filtering through as the security plates raise. Archimedes is once again sitting in a chair, as if nothing had happened.

"Now, in case you haven't noticed, I am currently holding the Yotsuba data network hostage. I have control of every system, communication, and file. If you try to attack me again, I will not hesitate to wipe your network clean. And don't bother trying to rely on your backups. I have control of those as well. But do not fret, I have not looked through any of the files in your network out of consideration for your privacy."

Maya stares blankly at the "child" before her for a few moments. Archimedes returns the stare with equal intensity. Maya looks down and convulsions begin to ravage her body. Archimedes raises an eyebrow at this strange behavior, but does not try to interfere. Maya's head slowly raises once again and there are tears running down her slender face. As soon as she makes eye contact with Archimedes, she bursts out into an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

"I realized..." She stammers out, trying to control her laughter.

"I realized we underestimated you...

But not to this extent!"

* * *

*bzzzz*

Archimedes groans and begins to groggily wake up.

*bzzzz*

Archimedes opens his eyes as he leans forward in the chair he was sleeping in.

*bzzzz*

He looks at his terminal which is vibrating on the table.

'Huh. Whoever is calling blocked their caller ID.'

The incoming call screen notification disappears, leaving the lock screen on.

'Why the hell do I have 24 missed calls?'

Archimedes glances at the on screen clock.

'Its four in the morning, way too late for a sales call. And I am sure that if it was something from Aunt Maya she would have called my lab directly after not being able to connect to my tablet...'

Archimedes unlocks his terminal and manuevers to the communication screen.

'Every call is from that same blocked number... I guess I can figure out who it is with my Necromancy...'

*bzzzz*

A call notification once again fills the screen.

'Its that same blocked number... May as well find out who it is...'

Archimedes answers, only opening an audio channel and bringing the terminal to his ear.

"Hello?"

"ARCHIMEDES!" A familiar female voice shouts.

Archimedes whips the terminal away from his ear at the sudden outburst.

"What took you so long to answer? I called you at least 20 times!"

Archimedes sets the terminal in its stand on the table, massaging his temples with he free hand.

"This would be your 25th call. Who are you anyways? Your number was blocked."

"Fu-fu-fu, you are going to figure that out on your own~"

Archimedes sighs, finally realizing who he is talking to.

"Mayumi, what do you want?"

"What? How did you figure out it was me?"

"I'm hanging up."

"Wait!"

...

"What?"

"I need your help! Do you think you can come over to my house?"

Archimedes goes silent.

"..."

"Archimedes?"

"Mayumi."

"Yes?"

"It is four A.M."

"Exactly! We don't have much time left!"

"..."

"Archimedes?"

"Good Night."

No! Please don't hang up! This is really important!"

*sigh*

"If this ends up being a waste of time..."

"It won't! I promise!"

"Send me your address, I'll be there as fast as I can."

"Yay! Thank you!"

At that point, something clicks in Archimedes' head.

"Wait... How did you even get my number?"

"Miyuki gave it to me."

* * *

Archimedes pulls to a stop in front of the mansion.

'This is the address...'

Archimedes looks up at the building, comparing it to how Maya described it to him.

'Nothing seems different on the outside...'

Archimedes catches sight of an external camera. He slips his contacts in before casting Necromancy. He quickly screens the data for anything useful. He soon has tabs on everyone in the house; their position, medical history, personal files, etc.

Of course, that means he knows exactly where Mayumi is.

He sighs before locking his motorcycle and begins to walk up to the front door.

He walks with measured paces, making sure that he can see himself on the cameras at all times.

As he nears the house proper, Mayumi bursts through the doors.

He sighs once again due to her chosen attire.

"It would seem that you and Miyuki are alike in that you both lose all sense of shame once you get home."

Mayumi comes to a stop in front of Archimedes, her puzzled look evident despite it being night.

"Hmm? Is there something wrong with what I am wearing?"

"It is more of a problem of what you are not wearing..."

Mayumi is wearing very short light blue shorts and a white tank top, showing off a lot of her milky white skin.

Mayumi puts her hands on her hips and leans forward in her usual fashion, an inquisitive look on her face.

Archimedes can now say, without a doubt, that she is not wearing a bra either.

"Anyways, what was so important that you had me come over at 5 am?" Archimedes asks, averting his eyes.

"Right! Follow me!"

Mayumi grabs Archimedes by the arm and drags him into the house. As soon as he is within the threshold, the doors are slammed shut and he is surrounded by butlers and maids.

"Mayumi..."

"Alright everyone! Time to make Archimedes into the ultimate manservant!"

Archimedes is immediately whisked away before he even realizes what is going on. He is brought into a side room and is quickly relieved of the jumpsuit he was wearing and promptly dressed into a butler's uniform before being shoved back into the atrium.

For a moment, he looks exactly as Mayumi dreamed. His long silver hair is slicked back with gel and the uniform hugs his slender frame, giving him a look of regality and grace.

But, that vision is broken almost immediately.

"What the fuck just happened?" Archimedes asks, shaking his hair back to its usual shaggy state.

"Awwwww! What did you do that for? You looked perfect!" Mayumi pouts.

"I am sorry Mayumi, but I don't do black and having my hair like that is uncomfortable." Archimedes says as he begins to take of the uniform.

"No! Don't take it off! You are my manservant today, remember?"

"Yeah? So what. It's not like I can wear this to school anyways."

"Sure you can!"

Archimedes stares at Mayumi with an accusative gaze.

"Mayumi, you are the student council president. You of all people should know that First High has strict rules about the uniforms."

"But they also have caveat for club uniforms~~"

"So?"

"So, I put it down as a uniform you have to wear for the student council!"

"And the school allowed that?"

"Why wouldn't they? I told them that you volunteered to be my personal assistant and the school board approved it. They were hesitant at first but they were all for it after I told them your name."

'Probably because Aunt Maya has flaunted me like a show horse ever since the Yotsubas went public about being a major shareholder in Grandfather's company. She may claim that they went public to show that magicians were supportive of non-magical industry, but everything she has done since then has clearly shown that she just couldn't wait until I officially became part of the Yotsubas to use me. The school board probably decided to let it slide to avoid her wrath.'

"There is no way I am getting out of this, is there?"

"Nope~~"

*Yawn*

Mayumi's eyes begin to droop, losing the energy they had before.

"Sorry Archimedes, let me just rest for a moment." She says before sitting down in a nearby chair.

Within a matter of moments, her breathing slows and her body goes lax. Archimedes sighs and turns to the young maid nearby.

"Could you direct me to Mayumi's room?" He asks, donning a charming smile.

The maid blushes, a light pink.

"I-i-its just up the stairs on the right."

Archimedes bows courteously before walking over to Mayumi. He gently lifts her from the chair, his arms wrapping around her slender body. As he does this, Mayumi stirs a bit. She shuffles in his arms for a minute before snuggling into his chest and falling back into a deep sleep.

'Her skin is really soft...'

Archimedes shakes his head, dispelling the sinful thoughts in his mind.

Archimedes sighs, but trudges up the stairs all the same.

Luckily, he finds that Mayumi's room has a name plate on it. The door is cracked and light can be seen coming from under the door. Archimedes opens the door with his back, turning back around as he enters the threshold.

"What do you think you are doing?" A girl's voice asks.

There are two girls sitting in Mayumi's room. One of them sports a short bob hair cut and is scowling at Archimedes, while the other has a shoulder length bob and is looking at Archimedes with curiosity. They both have light brown hair and look almost identical.

"Mayumi fell asleep downstairs so I carried her up here to put her into her bed."

"Hmm, first name and no honorifics? You obviously aren't a butler, despite your appearance. How do you know Nee?" The girl with the short bob asks.

"I go to First High. Mayumi quite literally forced me to join the student council in an honorary position. Would one of you mind moving the sheets on the bed so I can set her down?"

The girl with the longer bob nods and does as he asks. After Archimedes lays Mayumi down, the girl pulls the covers back over Mayumi.

"So who are you?" The girl with the short bob asks, irritation creeping into her voice.

"How about I answer all your questions in the hall so we don't wake Mayumi."

The girl with the short bob gives him a *hmph* but obeys, Archimedes and the other girl following close behind.

"Alright, we are in the hall now. Answer my question already."

Archimedes shuts the door with a soft *click* before turning on his heel and giving the girls a deep bow.

"Shiba Archimedes, at your service. I am the adopted son of Shiba Rei and Shiba Mya. I have no memories of life before I showed up on a beach when I was seven. I am the heir to the Shiba Technology Conglomerate and have been called a prodigy at mechanical engineering. May I ask your names?"

The girl with the long bob returns the bow.

"My name is Saegusa Izumi. My twin here is Saegusa Kasumi." Izumi says sweetly, smiling at Archimedes.

Kasumi on the other hand turns her nose at Archimedes.

"What are you doing here anyways? I heard Mayumi talking about having someone coming over tonight, but I wasn't expecting a boy." She spits venomously.

"To be honest, I wasn't expecting this either. Mayumi called me and told me to come over for something important. I didn't know that she just wanted to torture me more with our bet."

"Bet? What exactly did you bet Mayumi?"

"My wager was that she would let me leave the student council. She tricked me and made her wager to be her manservant once a week."

Kasumi bursts out laughing while Izumi giggles softly.

"W-w-what were you playing that you bet things like that?" Kasumi asks between laughs.

"Go Fish..." Archimedes answers quietly.

"What?" Kasumi asks, finally calming down.

"Go Fish. There was a deck of cards in the student council room and Mayumi said that the only game she knew how to play was Go Fish."

Kasumi starts laughing even harder than before.

"Forgive her, Shiba-san." Izumi says. "It is just that Nee-san only knows how to play Go Fish because she is terrible at card games. I can't even remember her winning once before."

Archimedes lifts his hands in despair.

"That's it. I'm done. I'm going downstairs to see if I can do anything useful."

"I doubt it. If you managed to lose to Mayumi in cards, I'm guessing all you can do is make more work for the staff." Kasumi says, still laughing.

* * *

Mayumi wakes to the pleasant smell of cooking food. She stretches and yawns, burrowing further under her covers. After a few moments, her eyes snap open and she sits up on her bed.

'How did I get here? The last thing I remember was sitting down... Oh no... I must have fallen asleep in front of Archimedes!'

She flushes beet red, frantically looking around the room for the silver haired enigma. Instead, she finds Kasumi sleeping in a nearby chair. Mayumi gets out of bed and gently shakes her awake. Kasumi bolts awake frantically looking around the room.

"Nee-san! Are you alright? Did that Beast do anything to you while I was asleep?" She frantically asks, spitting "Beast" out with extraordinary venom.

"I don't know what you are talking about. Who is this 'Beast' and why are you in my room?" Mayumi asks, concerned for her sisters mental state.

"That Beast that you invited over last night!"

"You mean Archimedes?"

"Yeah! You should be thankful that Izumi and I were waiting in here to ask who you had over that early! Who knows what that Beast would have done to you after he put you in bed!"

'I see, Archimedes must have carried me up after I fell asleep.'

Mayumi is about to probe further when her door opens.

"Mayumi, Kasumi. Come downstairs. Archimedes made breakfast."

Archimedes is at the stove, flipping pancakes when the three sisters walk in.

"Go ahead and have a seat at the table, I'll bring these over when they are ready."

"Archimedes?" Mayumi asks reluctantly.

"Yes?"

"What are you wearing?"

"Uh, my cooking attire?"

"... Alright then, let me rephrase that. Why are you wearing a full chef's outfit?"

"Oh, its so that my other clothes don't smell like food."

"..."

"What?"

"I mean why a chef's outfit, specifically. You could have just worn a tee shirt and shorts."

"Just habit, my dad always made me wear it when I cooked with him so it just feels right at this point."

"Wow. Your dad must love cooking."

"I hope so, he works as the head chef in the restaurant he owns."

"What restaurant?"

"It's in Tokyo City. He named it 'Eden.'"

Mayumi stops dead.

"Isn't that one of the most famous restaurants in all of Japan?"

"Yeah, it is known internationally as a unique blend of foods from around the world. He gets a lot of traffic from foreign nationals on business or political trips."

Archimedes turns off the stove and grabs the pile of pancakes he made.

"Come on Mayumi, have a seat. The pancakes are done." Archimedes says as he removes his hat with his unoccupied hand.

He sets the plate of pancakes down in the center of the round table and takes a seat. Both Mayumi and Izumi are about to grab a pancake when Kasumi raises a sudden interjection.

"Wait! Have the Beast eat one first. We have no idea what he could have done to these! He may have put something like an aphrodisiac in them!"

The table goes silent.

"I gather from that that I am this 'Beast?'"

"Who else would it be?" Kasumi asks irritably.

"Okay, I'll leave the nickname for now and address the bigger issue. Why do you think I put an aphrodisiac in the pancakes? In fact, why do you even know what an aphrodisiac is?"

"That isn't important now! We need to worry about the possibility of you drugging us!"

"I did not drug the pancakes." Archimedes says, taking a bite out of one of them.

"They are perfectly fine. Just eat up. School starts in an hour."

Mayumi and Izumi immediately start eating, whereas Kasumi waits a moment before following suit.

* * *

"Sorry about Kasumi." Mayumi says as she and Archimedes walk to school.

"Sorry enough to let me change out of this getup?"

"Nope~~"

"*sigh* So what exactly got Kasumi so worked up anyways?"

"Oh, she has always been suspicious and distrustful of boys who try to get close to me."

Archimedes raises an eyebrow at this.

"She does realize that you forced me to do all of this, right? I did not do this of my own volition."

Mayumi gives Archimedes a pout.

"Meanie. She probably knows but just thinks that you have some ulterior motive."

"That still doesn't explain the why she thought I was trying to drug you."

"I invited you over at 4 o'clock in the morning. We are both teenagers and you are a boy she has never met before. It is only natural that she was suspicious. Although, she does also tend to take things a bit far..."

"No kidding..."

* * *

"Don't say a word." Archimedes says tersely.

Archimedes is currently in his classroom, and everyone's eyes are on him.

"I'm sorry Archimedes, but you just look so cute in the uniform!" Miyuki says, her friends Honoka and Shizuku flanking her.

"I am going to kill Mayumi for this..."

* * *

The rest of the day went about how one would expect it to. Mayumi took Archimedes out of class and paraded him around the school doing menial tasks for her.

Never in his life had he looked forward to seeing Maya more than on that day.

* * *

Archimedes pulled into the underground garage at the Yotsuba main household. He left his motorcycle in his assigned spot before walking to Maya's study. No one stopped him as he walked, the Yotsuba valued him as Maya's protégé, not as some random magician off the street.

He pushes the heavy wooden doors open, entering Maya's all too familiar study.

"Ah, Archimedes. It is wonderful to see you in person again." Maya says, extending her right hand.

Archimedes takes her hand and places a light kiss on it before taking a seat.

"As to you, Auntie." Archimedes says before taking a seat across from her.

"So what is with the sudden interest in joining the JSDF?" Maya asks, taking a sip of tea.

"We both know they will find out about me eventually, there is no way I can avoid them as long as Tatsuya is with them. Honestly, I would have preferred them to have found me and sought me out rather than you having to call them in. But, my Hydra program has reached a state of usability ahead of schedule. And you know full well that the program was designed around Tatsuya and only reaches full effectiveness when they are used in tandem with his deployment. For now, I cannot test Hydra's effectiveness without attracting the JSDF's attention. Thus, it is easier to work with them than again them.

Furthermore, a weapon is only as effective as its wielder. The JSDF can only use Tatsuya like a blunt weapon. But that is not how Tatsuya is used best. He is like a broad sword, capable of taking down scores of enemies in a single strike or able to take down one large enemy with a well-placed stab. I am Tatsuya's chosen wielder, so it is only natural that I be in a position to command him."

Maya nods thoughtfully.

"That makes sense. Alright, you have my blessing. Come sit next to me, and I will order their escort here." Archimedes does as he is told, sitting down and comfortably drinking tea with Maya.

After a few moments, a man and a woman walk into the room.

The man is hardly remarkable given his profession. He is well built and has close cropped hair. Several insignias and medals dangle from his white dress shirt.

The woman, however, is stunning. Her rich black hair is tied off in a ponytail and she is wearing a cerulean dress that hugs her figure. Her looks would put most models to shame.

But Archimedes does not let either appearance distract him, for he knows exactly who they are.

The man is Major Kazama Harunobu, a ninjustu user and leader of the 101 independent magic-equipped battalion. He fought alongside Tatsuya in the invasion of Okinawa.

The woman is is Fujibayashi Kyouko, aka the Electron Sorceress. She wields magic that allows her to manipulate electronic systems easily, making her an expert hacker.

However, neither of them have any idea who Archimedes is.

"I thought we were here to discuss special lieutenant Ooguro Ryuuya." The Major says, taking a seat.

"We are." Maya answers with her enchanting voice.

"I apologize for any confusion I may have caused. I am Maya's nephew, Shiba Archimedes." Archimedes says, extending a hand and donning a brilliant smile.

The Major shakes Archimedes hand before returning the smile.

"It is nice to meet you, but I am afraid that we are here to discuss classified information. You are going to need to step out while we talk."

"Oh, but it won't make any difference whether I am physically in the room or not. I can still hear and see everything. In fact..."

Archimedes snaps his fingers and the blueprint of the "Third Eye" prototype is projected onto the table.

"I have already compromised your entire information network."

**New Chapter. I plan on having a Omake next chapter involving Archimedes and Mayumi. I have something in mind but I am also open to suggestions.**

**I want to skip to the action so bad... But I need to set everything up...**

**Stupid brain.**


End file.
